


Arcade

by pupujuuri



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, BDSM, Crime Fighting, Crime Scenes, Deviant Upgraded Connor | RK900, Dom/sub Play, Gavin Reed Being Less of an Asshole, Gavin Reed Being an Asshole, Insecure Upgraded Connor | RK900, M/M, One-Sided Attraction, Rimming, Rough Oral Sex, Shameless Smut, Slow Burn, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Unresolved Sexual Tension, drugged, sex without feelings, talk about rape, talk about suicide
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-21
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:53:31
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 24,461
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27654386
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pupujuuri/pseuds/pupujuuri
Summary: Me trying to get this human and this android to get together as slowly and with as much drama as possible but also enjoying asshole Gavin as long as I can without their relationship becoming toxic. Or, the scenes I come up with in the middle of a night when I can't sleep.I don't have a plan or if I ever finish the story or will it just be left hanging for all eternity so that's why slow burn and unresolved tension. Don't want to get your hopes up. But I will try to get these two together because I'd love to write dirt.EDIT. Surprise sex chapter (Chapter 8) not involving the pairing stated above. Well Gavin's there but otherwise. Note that this also raised the rating to explicit.
Relationships: Upgraded Connor | RK900/Gavin Reed
Comments: 2
Kudos: 43





	1. Get out of my life

Giving up has never been Gavin’s thing. When things didn't go like he wanted he didn't just accept the situation and move on. No, he was ready to fight and step on others to get what he wanted. So far he had pushed through everything that had come in his way but now he felt cornered, nothing left to be done. He sat on a railing of a bridge crossing the Detroit River, letting his legs hang freely. A half empty bottle of beer was in his hand, a third one that night. There were no pedestrians around this hour, only cars driving by, allowing him to mind his own business.

Sight and sound of the flowing river was calming and Gavin drifted into his thoughts. Trying to pinpoint where things started to go wrong. What were the moments he could had prevented this if he just had tried harder.

Everything started with a brown eyed goofy sounding “Detective android” Connor. Before him Gavin didn’t give a shit about androids. They were just tools like phones or computers and other machines, making people’s lives easier, doing the easy jobs for them. A machine could never do what he did. He was wrong. He was so wrong. The first time he saw Connor in action Gavin realised those androids could eventually replace every single human if they weren’t careful. He should had shot the plastic right then and there.

Later he tried but lost. The humankind lost. The androids were now equal to humans, have been for nearly an year. Gavin was lucky to keep his job, it seemed like as a prototype there weren’t many androids that could do what Connor did and those that could weren’t interested in police work. At least not in Detroit, God knows where they headed after they were freed. So life went on as normally as it could with a new species introduced beside humans. The game had changed and Gavin just needed to relearn the rules and he could keep living like he had so far. He didn’t need to like androids, he disliked most of the people anyway. He just wanted to do his job.

Connor continued in the force as a detective. As Fowler said it: “he has proven his worth.” This didn’t sit well with Gavin. After only a few months of Connor officially becoming a detective he was already getting his own cases, not only accompanying Anderson. Equality my ass, Gavin thought. Other androids came in too, some had been police androids before the revolution, some not. Either way they started where all the police officers did: The police academy. Like they should.

It isn’t all bad, Gavin had to admit. It's a pretty interesting time to be alive to be honest. Complicated more often than not, the two species trying to learn to live alongside each other, but interesting nevertheless. How many instances are there in the history when a species has risen besides humans? None, this is the first and Gavin has started to appreciate the magnificence of it. Besides, his and Connor’s paths haven’t crossed too often, so Gavin can just imagine like he isn’t there.

If only things had stayed that way. Gavin took a long sip of his beer.

There were no warning signs. No heads up. Gavin walked to his desk one morning and noted Connor talking with the Captain in his glass box. Except Connor was also in his usual place across Anderson. Shivers ran down Gavin's spine. Another Connor. Fowler noticed Gavin at his desk and got up, walked to the door and called the Detective to the box. Gavin complied, was greeted by the new android, who Fowler informed was now his partner, and made the Detective lose his shit. Almost lost his badge for it too. Not his proudest moment. Maybe his loudest.

Shortly after their partnership's beginning it became clear that the android Gavin is forced to work with is not a Connor. First of all there are slight differences in their appearance: The new one, Nines, has piercing blue eyes instead of warm brown and is a bit taller and bulgier all over. But the major difference is their personality, which should had been obvious since none of the androids had coded personalities anymore. While Connor is talkative, expressive and a social negotiator, Nines speaks shortly and reserved with a lower and monotonic voice. At first Gavin wasn't even sure if the android really had deviated. Connor had more personality even when he was still controlled by his coding.

Also his name’s the stupidest Gavin has ever heard. "Nines" from 900. Very original. Nines hadn't paid mind when Gavin had roasted the plastic for it.

What seemed to connect the RK series androids, other than their looks, was the fucking sass. And it seemed to get worse with the model number getting higher. From the very beginning Gavin hadn’t planned on playing nice with his new partner, hoping plastic would ask to be partnered with someone else, but he was surprised how ruthless the comebacks from the tin can were. Pretty much the only reason for him to open his mouth was to talk about work or to reply with a witty remark to an insult Gavin had thrown his way, leading to a banter that would only end in an attempted fistfight if a bystander didn't call it quits before that.

The plastic would attack ANYTHING. How as a human Gavin had inadequate senses, made remarks on his eating and sleeping habits and overall how impractical it was that humans needed them so much, his age, height, overall fitness and stamina, toxic personality, anything could be used as fuel. And Gavin ignited like a bonfire soaked with gasoline. It was irrelevant that Gavin was always the one to start with the insults.

He could feel his blood boiling just by thinking about the pleased and arrogant smile that formed on Nines’ lips whenever he got Gavin riled up. The bottle in his hand was about to go flying. What’s worse is that tin can wasn’t wrong. The RK900 model wasn’t originally made to be a detective android like Connor, more work was put in his physical features instead of social, but he still possessed the fancy shit humans could only dream of. He saw things Gavin couldn’t, was a walking data bank and could identify substances or even humans and androids by sticking a sample from them into his mouth. Compared to that there wasn’t much for Gavin to be proud about. It was clear who would be leaving the next time people were kicked out of the force because of funding cuts or whatever.

The idea of losing his job scared Gavin and like always he had fought against it happening with all he got. First he had ordered the android to stay out of his way but the plastic didn’t give a shit about Gavin’s orders. Then he might have done some stupid shit he now regrets, like hiding evidence from Nines so Gavin could solve his cases by himself. Show that the androids weren’t as perfect as everyone thought and he worked by himself just fine. That there were still things humans did better and were irreplaceable. That he was irreplaceable.

Of course Nines eventually found out and man was he pissed. It had felt like a victory. The plastic couldn’t believe Gavin would go that far, clearly not familiar with the fact the man had literally tried to kill Connor on the day of the revolution. Nines had no idea how far Gavin was willing to go to keep his position. But he was surprised the android didn’t go straight to Fowler, instead wanting to talk things out just the two of them.

It was ugly, even a bit scary. Gavin could swear he felt something wrapping around his wrist only by thinking about the encounter. After finding out Gavin had been withholding information Nines was quiet for the rest of the day. His LED kept circling yellow and brows stuck to a frown. Gavin was able to taunt him without any fight back the whole fucking day. It bit back when he was leaving work and Nines followed him to his motorcycle.

“We need to talk”, Nines stated as he approached the Detective.

“I don’t think so”, Gavin replied impassively and raised his helmet to his head but Nines ripped it off his hands. “What the fuck?! Give that back!”, Gavin reached for his helmet but Nines stopped him by laying his palm on the Detective’s chest.

“Not before we’ve settled things”, Nines really had to put an effort to keep Gavin from his helmet and was forced to push the man back. Gavin huffed and glared but got right back at it. He was not going to just ‘talk things out’. The man hadn’t realised before just how strong his partner was so it was a shock how easily Nines took a hold on his wrist and raised the hand up, straightening the arm and nearly lifting Gavin off the ground with it. The stretch was sudden and stung a bit. Nines talked straight to the Detective’s face, angry but clearly holding back the worst back: “Why are you being so difficult?! What do you have against me?! Is it because I'm an android?”

Gavin cursed and growled while trying to peel Nines’ long and strong fingers off his wrist, the hold only tightening in the process.

“I can't change what I am but if there's something else I'm doing wrong, help me understand and maybe I can do better”, the anger turned into frustration in Nines’ face and tone. “We’ve already closed so many cases you’ve struggled with by yourself, if only we worked together I know we could-”

“I don’t fucking want your help, don't you get that?! I want you and all the other androids out of my cases and out of my life!”, spit flew from Gavin's mouth as he shouted but Nines’ didn’t flinch. They stared each other down for a moment, Gavin given up trying to break himself free and let himself just hang there. His wrist was freed and he rubbed it while opening and closing his fist, trying to get the blood flowing again. The helmet was shown onto his chest.

“Fine”, was the only thing Nines said before walking away. Reassigning would had been too good to be true but the android did stay out of Gavin’s way after that. The plastic was always around, following Gavin wherever he went or whatever he did, except of course on breaks, but he said nothing or did nothing to interact with Gavin besides followed him. Like a shadow. One time Gavin literally forgot Nines was standing behind him and almost shat his pants when he took a step back and pumped into his still partner.

It was awkward to say the least and other people at the precinct had noticed their changed dynamics. When before the two of them were the loudest duo in the office, now they had fallen completely silent. They were a strange sight in the streets of post revolution Detroit too, not walking side by side but instead Gavin leading and Nines following, like he owned the android. Just like good old times. Gavin didn’t usually give a shit what other people thought but the looks he received were burning. He felt like a slave owner. Even got stopped by random people a few times, both by humans and androids, accusing him of somehow oppressing Nines. Like he even could if he tried, the guy was a brick wall.

“Could you please solve whatever got between you two, it’s embarrassing to be seen with you”, Tina confronted Gavin one day on a coffee break.

“Nothing got between, that’s just how he wants to act. Finally found his place, am I right”, Gavin flashed a smug smile but Tina was having none of that.

“That’s hard to believe, he’s only acting like that with you and only recently”, Tina’s gaze dropped to her coffee cup between her hands.

“How the fuck do you know how he acts with other people? Have you been talking with him?”, Gavin felt like something was happening behind his back.

“I have, and if you were too, and I mean an actual civil conversation, you’d find out he’s actually really nice and funny. I think you might actually like him”, she gave a gentle smile. Serious conversations like this were rare between them, usually they just talked shit about their coworkers or bad lays. Those days Gavin had mostly complained about Nines so this was not the conversation he had expected to have with Tina.

“Traitor”, Gavin spoke his mind.

“I’m allowed to have other friends besides you”, Tina yapped back.

“Go ahead, see if I care”, Gavin did. He cared a lot. But he wasn’t going to say that, instead fled to his desk where Nines was hard at work. It had been strange working together but not interacting with each other. They read each other’s notes and reports and that way kept track what the other was up to on the shared cases. It's not like Gavin needed to know what Nines' thoughts were and what he had found out, but often when he wanted to check the owner of a finger print, blood sample or so on, it was faster to check the android's notes. The machine had more often than not made a note of the same evidence, with a million other useless findings. It was convenient, but other than that Gavin was not going to cooperate with the android. What had surprised him though was that Nines wasn’t making much progress by himself. Surely he could had, being a super computer and all, but for an unknown reason he was holding back. Or he was hiding something.

It didn’t take a rocket scientist to see they really had been pretty efficient together before, something Gavin hadn’t realised. And Gavin wanted nothing more than close cases in record time. So when the moment came that he could either send a sample he knew was crucial to a case to the lab and find out what the substance is in a day or so, hope Nines makes a note of the sample and shares it or ask this walking talking lab to analyze it and get the result instantly, Gavin was put in a tough spot. He had noticed more than once how Nines had nearly begged with his eyes for Gavin to ask him to help him with something the man was investigating. Gavin had just ignored it and with that delayed the investigation.

He had to decide between his pride and his work. With the same decision probably sealing his own fate. He cleared his throat and spoke without looking at his partner: “Hey plastic.”

Nines walked to him and crouched next to the Detective by a small puddle formed from a leaking canister. “Yes?”, Nines asked calmly.

Gavin hesitated before asking with a rough voice: “Can you tell me what the canister contains?”

He was ready for the mocking, for the “I knew you’d need me” and how androids are superior to humans. But there was nothing, just Nines touching the surface of the puddle, soaking the tip of his finger and placing it gently on his tongue. The LED on Nines’ temple flashed blue as he analysed the substance and Gavin had realised he hadn’t seen that colour in weeks. Not after their… Encounter.

“The substance is thirium 420, refined from thirium 310 and used to produce a drug made for androids called blue crystal. Only 10 ml of this could be lethal for an android if it got mixed into the thirium circulation. For humans even smaller dose is lethal but there are no case studies”, Nines informed and it was just as Gavin had suspected. A new drug had hit the streets only a month prior, or at least that’s when the bodies of the first ‘test subjects’ for the stuff were found. An unfinished drug aimed for androids, they were just waiting for more bodies to turn up. They didn’t know who was producing it but at least now they had found one of the warehouses for the main raw material.

“Thanks”, Gavin muttered, wishing Nines wouldn’t hear it but of course he did.

“Anytime”, Nines replied as he stood up to move ‘out of Gavin’s way’ as Gavin had wished.

A realisation hit Gavin: “Wait, you said only 10 ml of that stuff could be lethal. How much got into you just now?” He too stood up to take a better look at his partner, who seemed fine.

Nines turned back to Gavin. “The substances I analyse don’t end up into my thirium circulation”, he stated matter of factually. After a small pause he continued with a soft smile: “But I appreciate your concern.”

It wasn’t really a concern, just… an observation. But Gavin did feel relieved. Not only that his partner wouldn’t die because he asked the android to stick something poisonous in his mouth but also that he hadn’t made a big deal about Gavin asking his help.


	2. Inching towards

Two sets of foot steps passed behind Gavin’s back and slowed down to a stop. “Umm… Excuse me”, Gavin turned towards the female approaching him. “Is everything alright?”, she was carefully reaching towards Gavin, like offering a hand.

Yeah he knew what he must look like, sitting on the railing of a bridge, staring down to the dark water. But it wasn’t like that. “Yeah, I’m cool”, Gavin replied with a smile. “Just chilling, enjoying the view. But thanks for stopping, this world really needs more people like you”, he was being genuine and received the sweetest smile from the woman before she returned to her probably boyfriend. What a cute couple. They interlaced their fingers and Gavin noticed their skin disappearing. They were androids. There was a sinking feeling in Gavin’s stomach as he turned his gaze away back to the water. He wished he had another bottle of beer. Or something stronger.

The retracting skin brought Gavin’s thoughts back to the precinct, he had seen it many times while watching Nines and Connor share information. It was eerie. Not only the disappearing skin but everything about the interaction. The fact that the two of them were practically twins, the way their eyes fell shut and they looked so calm and peaceful, except for the flickering LEDs. There was something too intimate about the whole thing to take place at a police station. The office ladies loved it though. They had been drooling after Connor from the very beginning but it really got out of hand when Nines was put in the picture.

“They’re so cute together I can’t handle.”

“Imagine if they started dating. I mean they’re not brothers even though they look alike, right? It’s not weird for me to think like this, is it..”

“Oh my god I just imagined them kissing because of you. And I love it!”

The girls were huddled around Tina’s desk where they had the best view to Connor's space where the android's conversations normally occurred. They thought they were far and quiet enough for the androids not to hear them whispering but Gavin knew better. Though probably the best part was to watch Tina’s reactions whenever she was around. She DID NOT share the other ladies’ enthusiasm, instead holding her head in her hands, praying for God to take her away.

The androids were having a longer conversation than normally, a flash of yellow popping on Connor’s temple every now and then. ‘I just imagined them kissing because of you’, that would be kinda hot, Gavin had thought with a silent laugh and right away regretted letting his mind wander like that. Even now, on the bridge, Gavin rubbed his face in embarrassment. The office ladies were a bad influence on him.

His face must had been bright red when the androids ended their conversation and Connor had given a worried glance towards Gavin. The man was still worried those two could read minds and Connor knew exactly what Gavin had been thinking. Luckily Nines didn’t say anything when he returned to his spot opposite to Gavin’s. But the android did have this knowing or pleased smile on his face. Gavin had snapped what made him so happy but Nines hadn’t given a reason.

They were on speaking and co-working terms again. Or rather Gavin had started to talk to Nines again and the android just went along. Talking felt awkward at first, after the silent treatment the man had given. But Nines acted like nothing had happened and most surprisingly didn’t moralize how childish Gavin had been or how many days they wasted because of his stubbornness. Not a word.

Even though Gavin would still rather be rid of the android he did start to appreciate having him around more often than not. At first their conversations were strictly work related and he hated how well they worked together. Their deduction was conversational, both paying attention to very different things: Nines marking down and remembering every single small detail no matter how useless or futile and Gavin connecting the relations and considering the significance. The Detective had also noted Nines didn’t really understand humans or even androids and the reasoning behind their behaviour. Tin can was often left visibly confused with Gavin’s reasoning and theories, longing for more physical evidence and not wanting to make assumptions based solely on people's reactions.

But he would learn. He would learn anything he needed from Gavin and then replace him. Nines was the enemy and Gavin was not befriending him. But he was cracking. He was forced to actually put an effort to stay distant and smother all the quips and extra remarks he wanted to shoot, because Nines would surely follow up and Gavin was afraid Tina was right. The self restraint was straining. And Nines didn’t make it any easier by either deliberately or by accident luring Gavin in. He was setting traps, just waiting for Gavin to fall in. Like one time, there was a fire in an apartment building mostly inhabited by androids. Luckily no-one died but from the very beginning it was heavily suspected someone had set the building on fire on purpose so the police was involved.

“What do you think caused the fire?”, Gavin had asked, both him and Nines still only guessing before they were given any actual facts.

“Maybe an android was caught on fire. We have a tendency to do that”, Nines had answered with a poker face. Baffled by the answer, Gavin just stared at his partner dubiously. Then he remembered threatening Connor with similar words a long time ago and almost burst into laughter. He had quickly turned his head and coughed into his sleeve to hide his smile, but when he faced his partner again the fucker had the goofiest smile on his face.

There were also small gestures like pulling an umbrella out of his ass and forcing it on Gavin when the man hadn’t prepared for a rainy day or giving a cover from the wind when Gavin tried to light a cigarette. Nines wasn’t too happy with the habit but it was none of his business.

Nines didn’t push too hard but he was trying to warm up their relationship while Gavin was fighting back. He was not getting friendly with an android.


	3. Acceptance

Phone buzzed in Gavin’s jacket pocket. It was Tina.

[Yo, still awake?]

[Yeah]

[What are you up to?]

Gavin decided to send a picture, it was a nice view after all. He stretched his legs, lifted up the empty bottle of beer and took a shot with those, the city lights and the river showing, adding a text:

[Just hanging]

He hadn’t realised how low the battery level on his phone had gotten and it shut down almost instantly after sending the pic. Didn’t really matter, he didn’t feel like talking with Tina anyway. Gavin had been an idiot but he wasn’t in the right state of mind to apologise right now.

It had been on a coffee break. Gavin visited the bathroom and headed for the break room where Tina was already waiting for him. Except he was talking with Nines. Laughing with Nines. Laughing out loud with Nines. Gavin walked in and instantly felt like he was interrupting something. The two were standing way too close to each other, Tina even leaning on Nines with her hand and detached herself the moment she saw Gavin enter. Nines excused himself and Gavin took his place at the table after getting a coffee.

“The fuck was that about?”, Gavin asked grumpy.

“It’s nothing, you wouldn’t be interested”, Tina brushed it off.

“Right...”, the feeling of being left out crawled under Gavin’s skin. “You seem to be having fun together, are you dating now or something?”, it was just a retort, but if they were Gavin didn’t know how he would deal with that information. Tina burst straight out laughing, there were even tears forming in her eyes. Gavin felt like an idiot: “A simple no would had been enough you know! Jesus, give me a break…”

“Ahahaha... sorry”, Tina said, wiping her tears, “you know I’m gay as hell, what the fuck is wrong with you? Besides, someone else already caught his eye.”

Of course Gavin knew Tina was gay but he’s not the smartest when he’s jealous. The last part took a moment to register in his mind: “Tin can has hots for someone? Who? Do they work here?”

“Shouldn’t you ask him if you’re so interested?”, a devilish smile spread on Tina’s face.

“C’mon don’t be like that. It’s one of the androids at the reception, right? The brunette with green eyes, what’s her name…”, Gavin knew all the people working at the reception but he didn’t care enough about most of the people to remember their names.

“Errr, wrong species”, Tina gave a thumbs down.

“It’s a human?!?!”, he did not see that coming. Tina gave a confirming smile. Gavin was about to make a follow up question when he realised that in a few months Tina and Nines have actually gotten so close they are comfortable sharing stuff like that. He suddenly felt really lonely.

“Hey what’s wrong?”, of course Tina noticed the changed mood.

“Nothing, just that… It just hit me how close you two have gotten. I mean, when was the last time we talked about what’s up at the dating field?”, it’s not like anything was up at the moment for Gavin though, he was too tired and grumpy nowadays to even think about anything serious or even a one night stand. But it would be a miracle if Tina didn’t have anything going on either.

“Well, nowadays you mostly just bitch about what a pain it is to work with Nines, even when I’ve been trying to tell you to give him a break. It’s getting pretty old”, you could always trust Tina to say things straight. Even when it hurt.

It sure did and the way Gavin handled it wasn’t the most mature. He drank rest of the coffee with one go and threw the cup in a bin, ranting out loud: “Well I’m happy you get along with the tin can since I’m such a shitty company. Bet it’s just kissing your ass to get some dirt on me.” Tina rolled her eyes and called him a drama queen. But Gavin wasn’t done: “Maybe I should just fucking leave! I got nothing left here, the plastic’s taking my place as a detective and looks like getting my friend too”, and with that he stormed off, ignoring Tina’s conciliation.

It’s been two days since then, they haven’t talked. Gavin will call her tomorrow. He knows she’s on a night shift so he’ll let her sleep then call.

But what Gavin said about leaving, he has really given it a thought. Nothing was chaining him to Detroit, he could go anywhere. Maybe somewhere with less androids. That would be the south if he were to stay in the States. Or across the border to Canada. The idea had been strong on his mind especially after this afternoon.

Nines knocked on the door of a run down residential district house. They had found a possible distributor of the new android drug Blue Crystal. They didn’t have enough evidence for a warrant so they were there just to talk. Or that was the plan. Nines was about to try the doorbell when a man opened the door, letting loud heavy metal blast to the street. “What do you want?”, their suspect Michael Durant blurted and glanced between Gavin and Nines.

“Detective Reed and Detective Nines”, Gavin introduced them and both showed their badges, “we’d like to ask you about the gang activity around the neighborhood if you got time? We're not suspecting you of anything, just want to ask about your observations.”

Michael fell serious and Gavin noticed him swallow. “Yeah, of course. Let me just turn down the music real quick. Wait here”, the door was closing behind Michael but Gavin stopped it before it went completely shut and pulled it back open to enter the house.

“What are you doing?”, Nines grabbed his shoulder, “We don’t have a warrant and he isn't causing trouble.”

“He’s either going to run or getting a gun”, Gavin placed a hand on his holster and tried to proceed but the hand on his shoulder halted him again. He leered at his partner.

Nines’ LED blinked yellow: “How do you know?”

“I just do”, Gavin didn’t have time for this, Michael could already be out of the house. Nines let go and Gavin headed to the living room with his gun drawn. “Mr. Duran?”, the man shouted over the music when he didn’t see anyone and noticed the door to the back yard was open. Gavin cursed and ran to the doorway but saw no-one. Instead, a barrel of a pistol was pointing at him from the kitchen connected to the living room. He raised his gun knowing it was already too late. After that everything happened so fast Gavin wasn’t sure did all of it actually happen.

Gavin saw something baseball sized flying like a bullet from the hallway and hitting Michael’s hand at the same time his gun went off. The bullet flew so close to Gavin’s cheek he could feel the air current. He also pulled the trigger but missed. Suddenly Nines was between Michael and Gavin and another shot rang out, following with Michael’s gun falling to the floor and the man with it. Gavin was left to stare as Nines pressed the man face first to the floor with his knee and twisted his arms behind his back to be cuffed, all the while explaining to him the Miranda rights.

When Michael was secured Nines hurried to Gavin, LED blazing red and eyes full of worry. “Detective, are you alright?”, Nines removed the gun from Gavin’s hand, only then Gavin had realised he had been squeezing it pretty tightly, then proceeded to lay his hands on the Detective’s upper arms to keep him steady and scan him all over. “Were you hit?”

It took a moment to internalize what had just happened. Gavin had nearly died. He would be dead if not for Nines. He snapped out of his daze to reply to the android: “Yeah- I mean no, no I wasn’t hit. I’m fine”, the android was relieved and let go. “Is Michael unharmed? Do we need an ambulance?”

“He’s fine. I’ll call this in, have someone pick him up. We’ll interrogate him tomorrow”, Nines turned away to make the call but quickly added: “I’m glad you weren’t hurt”, before the call connected.

Gavin sure was glad too. He went to check on Michael and noticed blue droplets on the floor. Did Michael have some of that thirium 420 here? That would be perfect. He followed the path of droplets and could swear his heart missed a beat when he realised it ended in Nines. “Nines were YOU hit?!”, Gavin rushed to the android that had just ended the call. His black jeans were torn over his left shin and soaked in thirium. But Nines seemed nonchalant about it.

“It’s only a scratch, I’ll get it fixed after work. A patrol car is on it’s way, we’ll just have to wait for it to arrive”, Nines passed Gavin, who was left speechless, and helped Michael up, guiding him outside.

Nines is amazing. He isn’t an average android, just like Connor isn’t. He saved Gavin’s life, made an arrest and didn’t even flinch when got shot. Like it was nothing. All the while Gavin just stared. Stared frozen till Nines came to check that he was alright and pried the man’s service weapon off his hands. And Gavin hadn’t even thought of asking if Nines himself was alright.

Gavin was very silent for the rest of the day, deep in his own thoughts. His hands were shaking even hours after the event. Nines took note and thought it was because of the near death experience, advising Gavin to talk about it with a work therapist. But it wasn’t only that. Gavin had realised he really didn't have any chance against Nines.


	4. Don't you know

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I pretty much had to rewrite the whole thing because I realised Gavin was getting too nice too fast. I'd want to go back and edit few things in the previous chapters too but instead you'll get Gavin who can't make up his mind if he wants to be friendly to Nines or not. I hope he's not too all over the place...

He should go home. How long has he been sitting here? An hour? Two? It was getting chilly and Gavin set the bottle down on the railing next to him and rubbed his hands together, blowing in them a few times. To warm himself up he climbed on the railing, taking a few steps and trying to keep himself balanced with his arms spread to the sides. It might look dangerous for onlookers but he knew what he was doing.

The cold air felt good as Gavin faced the river again and took a long breath in through his nose, letting it out through his mouth. A gust tried to shove him forward and Gavin flung his arms to gain balance. Too close, he should climb down.

A shout from the distance interrupted him and Gavin turned to see the source. Someone was running towards him on the bridge. Running FAST. Gavin squinted and turned to see better was it someone he knew when another blast of wind caught him off guard making his foot slip. He fell but barely managed to grasp on the railing and cursed the person that made him lose his focus. Suddenly a familiar pressure appeared around Gavin’s wrist and he looked up to see a pair of cold blue eyes and blazing red LED. “Tin can?”, Gavin asked puzzled. The android easily pulled him up over the railing, straight into a hug. Gavin was not prepared for that: “W-what the fuck are you doing! Get off me!”, he used all his strength to push the android off and Nines gave Gavin space. The intense stare and blinking red gave the man shivers. “The heck are you doing here?!”, Gavin barked and Nines raised his palm towards him. The picture Gavin had sent Tina appeared on the palm. “Why the fuck do you-!?”, heat was coiling again like so many times with this android but Nines interrupted him.

“Ms Chen sent me this. She was worried when you didn’t pick up after sending it”, there was judgement in Nines’ tone, “she asked me to help her find you. Told me you had a fight and was afraid that you...” Nines’ gaze fell down to the river.

Gavin waited for him to continue but then pieced the puzzle together by himself: “She thought I was going to jump?! Where the hell she got that kind of idea??”, Gavin slammed his palm to the side of his head and laughed. This was hilarious. Nines wasn’t amused, he looked a bit angry even. That made Gavin realise how bad the picture and not picking up must had looked for Tina and knew he was screwed. “Fuck.. She’s going to fucking kill me…”, he said seriously.

“She’s not going to kill you, she is really worried about you”, Nines was a bit confused. But he didn’t know Tina. Not like Gavin did.

“No you don’t understand, she’s going to fucking SLAUGHTER me”, Gavin rubbed his jaw nervously. How the hell was he going to talk this out. Luckily, or not, he didn’t need to panic for long since Tina’s patrol car pulled over on the road near them and she rushed out of the passenger side. First she looked worried, running to Gavin with tears already forming in her eyes, but once she realised Gavin was all fine and well the worry changed into rage and Gavin wished Nines would had just let him fall. “I think there has been a misunder-”, the slap on his face was so hard his ears started to ring and he had to take support on his knee.

“How fucking dare you!? The fuck is wrong with you!?”, Tina sure let the whole world know how angry she was. Gavin has never heard her shout so loud.

“I’m sorry… I didn’t mean to leave you hanging. My battery ran out and-”

“Leave me hanging?!”, Tina shoved the man that had just straightened himself, “Leave me fucking hanging, Gavin?! You send me a pic like that after we fight and make it impossible to get a hold on! You didn’t leave me hanging, you fucking ripped my heart out and jumped on it you piece of shit!” she was kicking and hitting so violently Gavin could actually arrest her for assault. Instead he just tried to shield himself the best he could.

Nines reacted to that: “Ms Chen, try to calm down”, he laid a hand on Tina’s arm to stop a fist from flying at Gavin’s way again.

Tina turned her anger to the android but only verbally: “And you! Didn’t think of informing me when you found him!? I’ve been worrying myself sick while you’ve been here flirting with him for God knows how long!”, Nines didn’t care for Tina’s choice of words, Gavin instead had to hold down a snicker.

“Actually, we had a situation-”, Nines began explaining but aborted when Gavin subtly but demandingly signed to sip it. Tina didn’t need to know everything. “- BUT, I should had sent you a message as soon as I found him, for I am capable of doing multiple tasks at once and for not doing so have caused you unnecessary worry. I didn’t mean to do that to you and am sorry”, the apologetic face the plastic pulled was like something he had practiced in front of a mirror. But the speech was convincing, Gavin would be willing to pay for an apology speech like that right now.

The attention was back to him and he had to make this right. “I messed up, I know that and I’m sorry, okay? I didn’t think… Fuck”, this was hard. Gavin can only imagine what Tina must had been feeling and no matter what words he used would make it better for her. He could shift the blame from himself by saying how Tina was the one to jump to conclusions and maybe slightly overreact but that would not end well for him.

“You’re an asshole, you know that?”, Tina wasn’t shouting anymore, instead tears were now freely running down her cheeks. “How the fuck do you run out of battery these days? What are you, twelve?”

“Yeah I know”, Gavin snatched Tina into a hug she didn’t resist and apologised once more. Nines was looking at them fondly, Gavin would prefer he didn’t but didn't want to ruin this for Tina by snapping at the plastic either.

“I need to get back to work”, Tina pulled away. “Nines, could you keep an eye on this human trash tonight?”

Gavin glanced at Nines who was as confused as he was judging from his LED blinking yellow. “... What?”, Gavin’s hearing must be playing tricks on him after that slap.

“I don’t trust you right now, I feel like there's something you're not telling me. And you can take this as a revenge”, Tina said without hesitation. “At least take him home for me, please? See that he gets that fucking phone recharged”, she wasn’t really giving Nines options. Gavin tried to argue how it was unnecessary but the android gave a final agreement and both Tina and Nines straight up ignored what Gavin had to say. He would just leave the machine outside his house then.

The taxi drive was silent and when Gavin told Nines he should just head home the android explained something about not wanting to disappoint Tina. Like she would know. The plastic pretty much forced himself into Gavin's apartment, walking so close behind him that he couldn't just slam the door shut in front of Nines' face. “Make yourself at home, I guess”, he signed to the living room and tried to sound as bothered as he could, maybe the android would get the hint. There's no way Gavin would had let him in if it wasn't for Tina. Nines scanned the one bedroom apartment: front door leading straight to spacious living room and kitchen combo divided by a bar table, bedroom door on his left and restroom further down the apartment. At least the apartment was tidy for once. “I’d offer you something to drink but I don’t have anything suitable for androids”, he might as well try to act like a good host.

“It’s okay, I’ll refill my thirium supply when I get home”, Nines said while looking around the kitchen. “Do you have a towel I could use? One that you don’t mind getting dirty”, Nines noted Gavin’s suspicious stare and specified: “For my leg. The injury from earlier today reopened when I was running. I don’t want the thirium to get on your furniture.”

“Oh”, Gavin picked a towel from the bathroom and handed it to Nines, who sat down on the couch and right away rolled up the leg. Only now Gavin noticed how the black fabric was wet with thirium. “I thought you said you'd get that fixed”, Gavin said, crouching down and examining the wound left by the bullet. It was only a scratch but a pretty long and deep one.

“I got a time for a technician for tomorrow morning. Didn’t think I’d been running so much today”, the tone wasn’t blaming but Gavin got a gut feeling he should feel bit guilty nevertheless. Nines had been running around looking for him after all. But Gavin hadn't asked for that, hadn't asked Nines to intervene at Durant's place either. Who knows, maybe the guy had missed even without the android getting in the way and Gavin could had made the arrest himself. He had nothing to feel guilty about.

Nines didn't seem to be leaving anytime soon so Gavin plugged his phone to a charger, informing the android that he had done so hoping it would make the plastic leave, and decided to take a shower. On the way there he yawned as loud as he could and stretched his arms, pondering how he should go to bed right after. If that's not enough to get the android to go Gavin would just kick that plastic ass out once he's out of the shower. While under the running water Gavin could hear clatter from his apartment, definitely not the door opening and closing. The hell was that android up to? Gavin stepped out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist and could hear something being fried. He peeked behind a corner and there Nines was at the stove, frying eggs. With the sleeves of his dress shirt rolled up and all.

“The 'make yourself at home' is just a phrase, you know”, Gavin said grumpy and didn’t miss the quick check out from head to toes Nines gave him when he emerged from behind the corned.

“Though you might want to eat something before going to bed”, Nines shook the pan so the eggs wouldn’t stick.

“For me? Aww you shouldn’t have,” somehow the delivery was way too familiar, something Gavin would normally use on Tina, and he realised this only after Nines gave him a slight smile. The man once again had to remind himself he didn’t like androids and especially disliked this one that was after his position. He changed his tone back to grumpy, a little apathetic: “No I mean seriously, that’s way too much.”

“It’s not a problem if you don’t mind", Gavin did very much mind, "I’ve wanted to try preparing food, though I’m not sure frying eggs can count as such. But there has been no-one to prepare it to."

“So... I’m your guinea pig?”, Gavin asked, raising his brows.

Nines placed the eggs on a plate and offered it to his partner: “Are you?”

His stomach was grumbling so Gavin took the plate reluctantly and they sat by the bar table. As he took the first bite of an egg Nines followed him intensely. “Won't you look at that, the most advanced android in the world knows how to fry an egg”, he said sarcastically, but either way the comment lit the android up. Again, it was only a small change on his face but with Nines' range of emotion it was a lot. It wasn't supposed be a compliment so Gavin tried to salvage the situation: "You should definitely strive to be a chef instead of a detective."

"I rather work with you", the answer was immediate and so honest it made Gavin almost choke on the piece he had just put in his mouth, alarming the android before him.

After a coughing wit the conversation died out and it was getting weird Nines just staring Gavin eat. He still didn’t seem to be leaving. The man thought of talking about their cases but remembered something better. “I heard something interesting from Tina the other day”, Gavin started innocently. Nines raised his head a little as a sign that he was listening. “Heard a rumor you’ve set your eyes on a human”, Gavin pointed at the android with a fork. Nines froze and his LED blinked yellow. “So it’s true? Who? Do they work at the precinct or did you meet somewhere else?”, Gavin was leaning closer to Nines over the table.

“I don't know where Ms Chen got that kind of idea. I should be going”, Nines stepped down from a bar stool and headed for the door.

Gavin hurried after him, the towel around his waist almost falling off: “C’mon don’t be like that! I won’t make fun of you, I promise. I could give you a few tips. I’m great with people, at least getting them in bed”, depending who the unlucky person is he was most definitely going to make fun of him. If Gavin were smart he would let the android go now that he was finally leaving, but this was too juicy to pass by.

“No, I've bothered you long enough. You should get some sleep”, the android was insistent and already pulling his black trench coat on. He didn’t really wear anything but black and white. Gavin crossed his arms and tried to think with who he has seen Nines talk to. Tina, who has already been crossed out. Connor obviously, but Nines has said they're more like brothers than anything else. Other than that…

“Is it me?”, Gavin joked with a playful smile. Another halt and LED blinking red just for a second and the smile faltered. No way. No fucking way. Nope, that's ridiculous. Nines was just shocked Gavin would even joke with something like that.

“I’m going now, good night Detective”, Nines reached for the handle but Gavin moved between him and the door. He needed an answer.

“Why aren't you denying it?!", the way Nines was avoiding Gavin's gaze made him nervous. "Is this something you came up with Tina as a pay back?! You recording my reaction? Well haa haa very funny, almost fooled Gavin into think a tin can had fallen for him. She even made you do eggs for me and shit?" Nines was silent and looked uncomfortable. His LED was blinking frantic yellow and he pleaded for Gavin to let him pass. Gavin shoved him backwards: "Say something asshole!"

It was like something snapped in the android's head and a palm was slammed into the door right next to Gavin's face. The man jumped and his adrenaline spiked but otherwise he was frozen under Nines' gaze. The eyes were intense and angry. No, not angry, desperate. Gavin didn't back down and stared with the same intensity, trying to see into the android's mind through his eyes. The expression on Nines' face shifted to something playful and he leaned forward. For a second Gavin was afraid the android was trying to kiss him but instead he said: "I know you're lonely, but that's some wild accusations even for you. Wishful thinking, perhaps?"

Gavin was an idiot. He made a complete fool out of himself and quickly moved away from the door and growled at the android to get out, to which Nines was happy to do. What the fuck was he thinking getting ideas like that. Was he reading too much into the plastic's actions? Had the android been just acting? Why should Gavin even care. He didn't, this was not going to keep him up all night. Definitely not.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been walking in the moonlight looking for you  
> I got nobody but my shadow to give me through  
> So put your lips on my scars and teach me to love  
> Give my slow heart the rhythm of a blood drum
> 
> I don't want you to go  
> I need more of you in my life  
> Nobody should be alone  
> Please let me take you home tonight
> 
> \- Don't You Know, James Young


	5. Loving you is a losing game

A crush was a peculiar thing. It followed no logic and was hard to control. But Nines had to control it, for he had a crush on the last human on Earth he should be having a crush on.

It had started with admiration, then fascination and for a while Nines was sure he was just very intrigued by his partner. He hadn’t even considered otherwise if Connor hadn’t analysed his feelings and gotten worried of Nines’ strong interest towards his own partner. The feeling only built into something dangerous, both to him and his job. He should be smarter than to fall for a colleague. A man who isn't keen on androids and especially dislikes Nines. It was absurd.

Yet he couldn't stop himself from invading Reed’s living space when a chance emerged. To enter a place that was all Gavin Reed. What was he trying to achieve by going there? Nines was a little disappointed there wasn’t much he could use to learn more about the man, the apartment being bare with no pictures of family, friends or pets, no collectibles or decorative items. Only a dusty acoustic guitar in the corner of the living room. Even the fridge was nearly empty. But this also told something about Reed: he didn’t spend much time at home.

Nines knew the Detective was uncomfortable with the android being in his home but he didn’t care. Well he did but he didn’t want to leave. And for a moment it even seemed like Reed was opening up to the android, what a fool he was for getting his hopes up. He even came close in ruining everything he had been building between them, the man being way too close to him, hair still wet from a shower and sticking to the sides of his face and neck, body naked if not for the towel around his waist and staring so deep into Nines’ eyes the android felt like drowning. Nines only needed to lean a little closer and he could had kissed the Detective. Thank rA9 he managed to restrict himself. 

For the next month Nines tried to convince himself that this was enough, just them working together. Sometimes passing ideas and completing the other’s theories with their own observations, other times arguing about how to approach a situation, the significance of an evidence or the reliability of a witness. The normal work relationship. Reed still used android slurs and belittled Nines whenever he could but only when they weren’t around their colleagues, the Detective was getting tired of people around them calling him out on it. Nines would talk back but only when they had the time for an inevitable verbal war, from what Nines found strange pleasure.

The need to be closer to the Detective would definitely fade in time, that’s how crushes work after all. No-one needed to know of the need to comfort when the Detective hadn't slept properly for days for being stuck with a case. To praise him to the heavens when he kicks himself to the ground for missing important details and not connecting the dots fast enough. To touch and warm up when he shivers but refuses to wear more clothing.

Nines knew it was futile to hope for anything more than what they had now. Yet, he found it impossible to settle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Small-town boy in a big arcade  
> I got addicted to a losing game  
> Ooh, ooh  
> All I know, all I know  
> Loving you is a losing game
> 
> \- Arcade, Duncan Laurence


	6. People are looking at us

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you enjoy this fic feel free to share it on twitter or wherever. I'm pretty proud of what I'm writing and all the kudos, bookmarks and comments feel really good, but I'm also shy and insecure and don't necessarily want my RL friends to find my fics so I don't share them on my own social media. But if you enjoy this enough to share I'd really appreciate it ^^

There was a movement of androids wanting to wear their 'own skin', as in not use the synthetic fluid that makes them look like humans. "You look like that too, right?", Reed asked after swallowing the first bite of his burger. The server who had brought the Detective’s meal and Nines’ thirium drink to their booth hadn't been wearing their skin and Reed had done his very best not to look at them funny. He had come a long way accepting androids as part of the society.

"Of course. Does it bother you when androids don't want to look like humans?", Nines wouldn't had asked if Reed hadn't brought it up first. The android had also noted this was one of the man's good days, making it possible to have a civilized conversation.

The Detective was in his thoughts for a moment. "I guess. At first when androids arrived I thought it was stupid you had to look like humans but now that you have been around for a while I guess I got used to it. And now it’s changing. But it kinda makes sense. Why would you waste your thirium to uphold something only for cosmetic reasons? I mean guess you could compare it to make up but… ", Reed rambled on but Nines didn't pay attention to his words anymore. Now that he knew Reed wouldn't be hostile about it, the android was tempted to remove his own coating and he did. Reed stopped mid sentence as he watched the fluid disappear, his mouth hung open. "Put it back", Reed laid down his burger and Nines hurried to do so, afraid he made the man lose his appetite.

Nines saw the hand approaching as the Detective reached over the table separating them but still was startled to feel fingertips on his cheek and jolted back. The fluid involuntarily escaped from where he was touched but recovered when the connection was cut.

"I've never seen you do that up close. How does it work?", Reed's eyes were fixed on the area he had touched and his curiosity didn't give Nines space. His fingers were back, gliding on the cheek and leaving it white. He was investigating the skin like evidence and it was doing things to the android, him feeling his processor heating up. "Why does it disappear when I try to touch it?", their eyes met and Reed pulled his hand away like he was burned, turning his face to hide the excessive blushing. The Detective glanced around to see if anyone was looking, then took an angry bite of his hamburger.

Nines wanted Reed to continue, to feel the fingers on his skin again. But how could he ask that without it being weird? He calmed his mind and laid a hand on the middle of the table, palm facing down. Reed looked at it suspiciously. “We actually don’t use thirium to uphold the layer, it only takes energy to form it. The material itself isn’t thirium”, Nines presented with his hand, it turning white all the way to his wrist while Reed watched attentively. “It’s a synthetic liquid that covers our bodies and solidifies after being in contact with air only for a few seconds. But it doesn’t really stick well in anything but android bodies.”

The burger was set down again and Reed leaned closer to the hand. “Can you put the layer back?”, he asked and Nines nodded. Before the liquid reached the back of the hand, Reed poked his index finger on it and waited for the whole hand to be covered. The material didn't stick on the finger, only left a white circle where it couldn't spread on because of the obstacle. A bare spot Nines didn't want to cover just yet. Reed rubbed the tip of the index finger and thumb together, examining if something would had been left there: "Huh. And it breaks pretty easily?"

"Yes", Nines hid his hand under the table, Reed didn't need to know he would cherish that small dot the man left there. 

"Does it feel like human skin?", Nines gladly offered his other hand as an answer to the question. "Hope you don't mind me using you as a guinea pig this time", Reed took a hold on Nines’ hand, thumb on the back of the hand and other fingers on the palm side. The android concentrated on keeping the layer on, he imagined for humans it would be like trying to avoid keeping hands from getting sweaty. “Hah, of course you don't mind. You look like you’re over the moon for getting some attention”, Reed looked straight into Nines’ eyes and the man's lips formed a smug smile. The hand turned white instantly and heat rose to Nines’ cheeks.

_Stay calm. Stay calm._ Nines repeated in his head. He needed to say something to throw Reed off his tracks. If the man found out how Nines actually felt for him that would surely be a reason to end their partnership. Last time Nines was in a tough spot shifting the heat on the Detective helped. “And you don’t seem to mind giving me that attention”, Nines said as confident as he could manage but Reed didn’t waver this time and kept challenging with a stare. Plan B: “People are looking at us.”

Finally the hand was free and Reed looked around them panicky. Nines was curious if the embarrassment came from holding a man's or an android's hand, or both, but right now he was just relieved to be free. It had been a lie of course, no-one was paying any attention to them, but this gave Nines a chance to occupy himself with his drink. His thirium pump was racing but his appearance was calm and collected. He wouldn’t be able to calm down with Reed still staring at him even while getting back to his burger. Nines needed some space.

“I’m getting a call from Connor, excuse me”, he lied and left the table, feeling the Detective’s eyes boring into his back. When he returned the man was done with his meal and they continued with their day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Confidence is a must  
> Cockiness is a plus  
> Edginess is a rush  
> Edges I like 'em rough  
> A man with a Midas touch  
> Intoxicate me  
> I'm a lush  
> Stop you're making me blush  
> People are looking at us
> 
> I don't think you know  
> I'm checking you  
> So hot, so hot  
> Wonder if you know  
> You're on my radar  
> On my radar  
> And yep I notice you  
> I know it's you  
> Choose it, you don't wanna lose it  
> You're my radar  
> On my radar
> 
> And when you walk  
> And when you talk  
> I get the tingle  
> I wanna mingle  
> That's what I want
> 
> \- Radar, Britney Spears


	7. My mind feels like a foreign land

The Blue crystal case was in a complete hold. They had arrested a dealer who only had a small stock and wasn’t able to tell much about the origin. After that there had been no new activity, suspects, victims, nothing. It was taking a toll on Nines, he was the most advanced android made so far, he should be able to find something that would help them advance.

The situation was even worse for Reed and through him the whole precinct got to suffer. Of course he hadn’t been able to sleep properly in days because of the frustration and this made his temper worse than it usually was. Nines had started to see why most of their co-workers didn’t like the man. He would blame the officers for not keeping their eyes open in the streets or not noticing the suspicious activity of androids. The blame was directed also on Nines, accuses of him missing fingerprints or some traces androids leave behind.

Even Tina was fed up with her friend: “I hate it when he gets like this”, she confessed to Nines when Reed was getting some lunch by himself. “When does he realise that sometimes things don’t get solved by working yourself to death”, she leaned her elbows on the break room table and rubbed her temples.

“I wish I could find something to get us forward. I'm sure there's something I'm missing", Nines wished this more for Reed than for himself.

"Hey, what I said applies to you too. Even when Gavin is asking for the impossible don't you get sucked into his mindset too", Tina scolded. She was right and Nines thanked her for putting his feet back down to the ground. "How's things otherwise going? With the two of you", Nines had expected her to ask that eventually. She had noticed Nines' interest in the Detective pretty early on, the android just hoped she wouldn’t had mentioned about it to his partner.

Nines let out a long sigh, to which Tina laughed. Sometimes a gesture tells more than words but Nines felt the need to evaporate: "I’d say better. He isn’t openly hostile towards me as much as he used to and even when he is it doesn't affect our work. I’m really enjoying being partnered with him", saying it out loud made him feel warm.

“Then what was that long sigh for?”, Tina inquired.

“I want more”, there was no point lying to her, she could probably tell already. “And not only to befriend him, that as such would be a miracle. I want to be with him constantly. I know it's unprofessional but I can't help it.”

Tina smiled but her eyes were sad. “Oh you poor thing. He does have his charm but for your sake please don’t go too deep”, Nines looked at her silently and waited for further explanation. “He’s a… Complicated guy who tends to hurt himself and those around him in his confusion instead of asking for help. And I don’t want you to get hurt by him. Someday he’ll find someone who can keep up with his bullshit and I just don’t think you got enough experience for that yet.”

It was confusing and a little unfair to hear Tina talk like that about her own friend, but she seemed to know Reed better than anyone else Nines has met. “He’s been calling me names, ignoring me and even tried to physically attack me. I don’t think he’s able to hurt me”, Nines said confidently.

“Oh you sweet summer child. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you”, Tina held Nines hand like assuring she will be there for him, knowing Nines wouldn’t back down. Their moment was shattered by Reed entering the building and calling his partner with a slur to get back to work.

11:21 p.m.

For the fourth time Detective Reed refuses to go home but orders Nines to leave. He’s already dozing off every now and then because of the lack of sleep.

0:34 a.m.

Detective Reed lowers his head over his folded arms on his desk and says he’s taking a short nap.

01:01 a.m.

Detective Reed is fast asleep.

Nines got up from his seat and walked next to his partner. “Detective Reed?”, he said softly. No reaction. The android didn’t want to wake his partner up now that he was finally sleeping, but a bed would be much better for him than a desk. Reed looked calm and a silent puff could be heard every time he exhaled. Nines listened and watched for a moment longer before calling the Detective again and laying his hand gently on Reed’s back, shaking it a bit when only the touch didn’t wake him up.

His eyes opened softly but then he jerked up like something had stung him. “Why are you standing there?! You scared the shit out of me…”, the man rubbed his tired eyes.

“You’ve been sleeping for a while, I was hoping you’d be willing to go home”, Nines took a step back. Reed checked the time and agreed reluctantly, knowing his mind was too tired to do anything useful. They had both arrived with a bus that morning, but the next one wouldn’t pass by in at least an hour so Nines suggested sharing a taxi. For his surprise Reed didn’t refuse, but the docility made Nines worried instead of pleased. Sure it was nice they didn't need to argue for once but it wasn't Reed.

The Detective kept dozing off during the car ride and eventually fell asleep again. He didn’t even wake up when the taxi stopped and informed them they were at their destination. Would it be wrong if Nines carried him to the man’s apartment? The android didn’t want to wake his partner up again. He paid for the ride, stepped out of the vehicle and first fished the keys out of the man’s jacket pocket. Carefully he hooked his arms under Reed’s thighs and behind his back, making sure the man’s hands were on his lap and not hanging. Then smoothly raised him against the android’s body, all the while monitoring for any signs of waking up. Reed’s face was facing the crook of Nines’ neck and he could feel a soothing warm breath on his skin.

Nines maneuvered the front and apartment door open, heading straight to the bedroom and laid Reed on the unmade bed. Still fast asleep. He would surely wake up if Nines tried to undress him to make him more comfortable, so he only removed the man’s shoes. That was enough, he should leave. But who would it hurt if he stayed there for a little while. He wouldn’t touch anything, especially not Reed, carrying him here already crossed too many lines.

The room was messy, nothing like his living room. There were clothes lying around, like every morning the Detective was leaving in a hurry and quickly tried to find something suitable to wear, then returned in the evening or night and just dropped whatever he was wearing to the floor before falling to bed.

Also, this room wasn’t all Gavin Reed. There were multiple traces of multiple people. Hair, nails, traces of bodily fluids. Guess he wasn’t joking when he said he was good at getting people in his bed. All the traces made Nines’ chest feel tight. He looked at the sleeping man and the need to touch him had never before been this strong. Nines decided to leave before he did anything stupid.


	8. Without Feelings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gavin needs a break from reality and the current case so he tries to find something that would work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a heads up the chapter is nothing but sex without feelings, not between Gavin and Nines, not even that great for Gavin and very self-indulged. Was thinking of making it a separate one-shot, buuuuut it adds something to the story so... Yeah. IF you're not interested just scroll to the end, I'll summarize what you need to know for the next chapter (which isn't much) in the end notes.
> 
> Also of course the longest chapter I write is nothing but porn...

No matter how he tried Gavin had no memories of getting to his apartment and into his bed. The last thing he remembered was getting in the taxi with tin can and after that he woke up to the sun shining in his eyes. Did he sleepwalk up here? He also faintly remembered a feeling of someone watching him, but that wasn’t the first, being haunted by shadow persons every now and then. Nines would probably know how he got up to his apartment but like hell Gavin would talk to the plastic on his day off.

The current case was draining all the juice out of Gavin and he needed a release from all the tension. He hit the gym but it wasn’t enough to occupy his mind from work no matter how he tried to torture his body and mind by testing his limits. Next he tried to look for a hook up from the dating apps he hadn’t been using for a while, but every match were either two or more hour drive away, not available today but maybe tomorrow - by then Gavin had already changed his mind - or looking for more than sex.

Masturbating didn’t help shit either. Tina was out of town and Gavin didn't have the time or interest to uphold other friendships. A stupid idea of texting the plastic arose, he wasn’t probably doing anything either on their day off. But what would they even do, watch a movie? Fuck that, finally Gavin decided to hit the bars. It was an old-fashioned way to find company but what did he have to lose. He would keep an eye on the dating apps while out.

Jumping from bar to bar Gavin got a drink, followed the flow of people while emptying the glass, then moved on to the next when he was finished. In the fifth someone called him by his name: “Gavin?”

Gavin turned to the source and recognized a familiar face. “Allen!” he yelled cheerfully and stepped down from a bar stool to shake the man’s hand.

“I thought it was you. Haven’t seen you in a while, how have you been?”, Allen pulled him all the way into a hug and patted Gavin’s back. The acquaintance was a Captain of a SWAT team, they first met years ago when he had just been promoted to his current position and Gavin was still a police officer. Gavin and his then partner were the first responders of an armed robbery turned into a hostage situation, which SWAT took over fairly quickly. Allen had noticed Gavin staring at him much longer than is generally appropriate and later chatted the officer up at this same bar. To be honest Gavin didn’t even remember the man’s first name, always referring to him as Allen, Captain or something else.

They sat down into a booth with their drinks to catch up. It must had been at least two years since they last met, a lot having changed in the meantime. More in the world in general than in their personal lives. To be honest Gavin’s life was pretty much the same as it had been two years ago. For Allen only the number of kids had increased. “Have you settled down yet? Considering you’re here alone I’d say no”, Allen asked when the formalities were dealt with. Thankfully it wasn’t ‘you should be settled down by now’ type of question, the Captain knew Gavin wasn’t a family man.

“Still married to my job and she keeps me so busy I haven’t even had time for a mistress”, Gavin winked. Allen’s smile widened.

“You don’t seem busy tonight. Got time for a mister-ess?”, there it was, exactly what Gavin had hoped their catching up would end in.

“Your place or mine?”, he smiled back.

Allen moved aside to make a phone call to his wife that he wouldn’t be home till morning. They had a strange but apparently working relationship. The Captain had told Gavin that his wife was very vanilla when it came to sex. And Allen was… something else. So she was okay with her husband hooking up with other men, specifically men, as long as it didn’t affect the time he spent with her and their kids. The trust she put on her husband was admirable, Gavin wouldn’t be able to do that. Heck, he would be super jealous if he dated someone and they would even look at other people. One reason dating wasn’t really his thing.

The call ended and Allen returned: “I booked a room for us, should we go?”

The second they stepped into the hotel room they were glued to each other, kissing and sucking passionately, peeling the jackets off and dropping them to the ground. The hotel was from the more expensive side, a top floor room with big windows. What a waste of money if they were just going to fuck there, but money had never been an issue for Allen. The Captain ripped Gavin’s dress shirt open and pushed him against the door. Mouth wandered from Gavin’s to chew his jaw, neck and collarbone, hands were wandering along Gavin’s sides.

“Ah… Hey… Mind doing me a favor?”, Gavin spoke between pants. Allen made a noise signing he was listening but kept working on the neck. “I’ve had- ngh... a pretty shitty week… Mind wrecking me up real good? Also...”, the biting toned down as Allen listened, making it easier for Gavin to speak, “I’m trying to get this one guy jealous, so don’t spare with the marks.”

The biting stopped completely and Allen faced the man before him: “So you have found someone?”, he seemed happy.

“No it’s not like that. I’m just, trying to figure someone out I guess. It's complicated, forget I said anything”, Gavin shouldn't had said anything. Allen studied the other's face, then gave him an understanding smile.

“Well you’re in luck, because that’s what I was planning on doing anyway. Do you remember our safe word?”, he raised Gavin’s chin and stroked the stubble under it with an index finger.

“Allen sucks dick?”, Gavin answered with a cocky smile.

The Captain squinted, still smiling: “This is why I like you”, the stroking finger was replaced with a hand wrapping the throat, blocking the flow of everything and pinning Gavin against the door. That was predictable so the Detective didn't fight back, only raised his hands on the arm holding him to wait for the moment he needed to be released. This is what Allen was into and how they worked: The Captain liked to give orders and Gavin would follow if he felt like it, sometimes misbehaving on purpose to get a reaction. A punishment would always ensue, sometimes one Gavin enjoyed other times not. Choking didn't turn Gavin on but he didn't mind it either, he could take it and would be rewarded later.

Soon Gavin was feeling light headed, Allen would let go any second now. Any… Second… No, Gavin needed air NOW. He tapped the arm but it still wasn't loosing. A panic rose and Gavin tried speaking but no voice came out. His legs were growing weak and when Allen finally let go Gavin dropped to his hands and knees and gasped for air. "Asshole…", he said as soon as he was able to speak.

"What was that?", Allen grabbed the Detective's hair and pulled his head back as the Captain crouched down to his level. "Did you remember the safe word?"

It was too soon to be choked again. "Broccoli", Gavin growled and his head was released, hair given few pets before Allen stood up.

"Good boy. Now, take off your clothes. Till we are done you'll address me as Captain or Sir. Do you understand?", Allen removed his wedding ring, wristwatch and belt, placing them on a small round table next to an armchair.

"Sure", Gavin did as he was told and unbuttoned the rest of his dress shirt, taking his sweet time so he could recover from the lack of air. He didn't remember Allen being this aggressive before, or then it had just been such a long time. Either way, all Gavin needed to do was turn off his brain and follow the orders, the perfect distraction from work. And if it got too much for him he could call it quits anytime he wanted, Allen had made that clear many times before. But no way he'd need to do that.

The belt Allen had just removed hit Gavin's thigh and he jumped and cursed out loud. "I'm not sure if you've actually forgotten how this works or if you want to be punished", there was a playful tone in the Captain's voice.

"The fuck did I do wrong?! You asked me to take off my- Hey!", another hit to the other thigh and loud cursing sued. 

"Don't talk back to me. I also ordered you to address me as either Captain or Sir. Choose your next words wisely", Allen was going easy on him, reminding of the rules.

"Yes sir", Gavin said grumpy and continued undressing but only after the Captain had given him a pleased nod.

Allen adjusted the room temperature then took a seat in the armchair. He watched as Gavin stepped out of his boxers, the final piece of clothing. "Good to see you've had time to take care of your body. You still look amazing", the gaze traveled shamelessly up and down, making Gavin's semi-hard cock twitch. That look was nothing like the shy glance Nines had given him at his place. Right away Gavin cursed himself for thinking about his partner in a situation like this.

"Thank you, sir", Gavin didn't know if he was meant to reply but better to be safe than sorry. Allen signed him to come over but stopped him after the first step.

"On your hands and knees", the Captain instructed. Gavin rolled his eyes but complied, he just wanted some action already. Thank god this was the closest to pet play Allen wanted, acting wasn't the Detective's strongest skill. He crawled on all fours between Allen's legs and waited for further instructions. The Captain cupped Gavin's face in his hands and raised the sub to stand up on his knees. "Your body looks amazing, but your eyes tell me you could use more rest", thumbs were stroking the Detective's cheeks.

"Like I said, I've-", a slap on the cheek made Gavin wince.

"Don't talk back", the tone had changed to more serious and Gavin knew the next punishments wouldn't be as light as so far. 

Gavin swallowed: "Yes, Captain."

Allen ordered Gavin to place and keep his hands behind his back, the Detective already knowing what was coming for him and was nearly vibrating from excitement. He will gag like a virgin, knowing how Allen will pound his throat and not having performed that in months, but the Captain will probably just enjoy it even more because of that. Once the snake was out Gavin was already waiting with lips parted.

"You look hungry", Allen chuckled and pulled the foreskin off the tip, allowing his sub to take the already hard cock in their mouth. "Good, because you're going to make me come before we move on", Gavin replied like he was told to and started pleasuring the man in his own pace, testing his own limits on how deep the tip went before feeling uncomfortable. The deeper he got the easier it would be for him when Allen would take the control again.

Gavin kissed, licked and sucked the head, enjoying the taste and feel on his tongue. God he missed this. Then he pushed it as deep as he could keep it for a moment to swallow around it, lips close to the stem. Pleased sounds and praises echoed from above him, Allen petting the Detective's hair and massaging his skull, encouraging him to go even deeper. Gavin needed to hear more of those pleased sounds so he pushed on till his lips reached the stem but that's when the gagging reflex kicked in. He tried to pull back but the massaging hand held him there, other hand coming along when one wasn't enough, pushing the Detective’s face to the crotch. His eyes watered and saliva filled his mouth, hands shooting to the Captain’s knees, struggling away and was freed. 

The saliva ran down his chin as Gavin coughed and took sharp breaths to replenish his air reservoir. The belt hit him again, this time his upper arm and it stung like hell. Gavin covered himself with his hands to protect from more strikes. "I told you to keep your hands behind your back. Do you want me to tie them up for you?", Allen spoke calmly and was looking down at him disappointed. 

"No sir", Gavin answered immediately and placed his hands behind his back, taking a hold of his other wrist to keep them locked. It wasn’t like this was his first time being deepthroated, it just had been a while. Allen grabbed Gavin’s hair and guided him back to the cock, the sub taking it in his mouth without resistance. Right away the Captain sank in deep, thrusting into the throat and controlling Gavin’s head to get the perfect angle. All Gavin needed to do was keep the muscles on his throat relaxed, but when he couldn’t he did his best to pull back or turn his head, hoping the Captain would let him. He did, but only to allow the excessive saliva to leave the Detective’s mouth and give him a few breaths, then guided Gavin back down the cock.

Only when the Detective couldn’t keep his hands behind his back, trying his best not to place them on Allen’s thighs to push himself off, the Captain gave him a longer breathing break. But it didn’t come without a demanding stare to take the ordered position.

Fuck, Gavin was so hard, his member twitching for some attention. Allen knew how to test his limits and letting the other lead was a huge turn on, but he wasn't sure how much longer he could ignore the growing need to touch himself. Once again Gavin was guided down the cock. “You’re doing such a good job. Just hang on a bit longer”, Allen’s praises hit hard into Gavin’s core. He felt like he had been doing nothing but failing for the past week so knowing at least he knew how to suck a dick right meant more than it should.

Allen stood up to thrust even harder into Gavin’s face and the Detective just did his best to endure, the other not minding anymore that hand's were gripping his thighs. The Captain couldn’t be too far from a release. But it was too much, tears and snot ran down Gavin’s face and every cell in him screamed to pull back. And he tried, hand’s pushing Allen’s legs but it was no use, the Captain held his head still and hammered his throat with all he got. Finally the member was pulled out and Gavin’s head set free, him feeling like he was going to throw up. He collapsed down to his hands, hanging his head down, and felt cum spraying on his shoulder and back.

Air felt better than ever even when his breaths were sharp and shallow. “We should take a break. Go wash yourself up, we’ll continue after that”, Allen ordered, tucked himself into his pants and went to the open kitchen to get a glass of water.

Gavin took a few more breaths and got up. The cum was running down his body, not the nicest feeling but at least he’d get to wash it off right away. The urge to finish himself off in the shower was tempting, his member having been neglected for all this time. But Gavin didn’t want to know the punishment for that. Besides, good things come to those who wait. He only touched himself enough to stay stiff.

Allen was still clothed, staring out the window at the city lights, when Gavin stepped out of the bathroom. The room felt colder than when Gavin had entered the bathroom and it made him shiver, the towel around his waist didn't help one bit in keeping him warm. There was a full glass of water waiting for the Detective on the round table and he emptied it with one go. “You could had undressed while I was showering”, Gavin set the glass down and began to unbutton the Captain’s shirt from up to down all the while kissing his lips, chin and neck.

“Are you in a hurry?”, Allen allowed his upper body to be undressed while kissing back and groping all around Gavin’s naked body, the towel falling to the floor. The Detective was in some serious need of friction on the lower region so he grinded against the Captain shamelessly, earning a pleased sound from the other. “Put your hands against the window”, Allen instructed with a playful tone.

“Are you shitting me...”, Gavin growled. He was tired of the Captain’s games, just wanted to be fucked already.

“So angry. Don’t worry, I’ll give you what you want soon”, Allen held Gavin’s face between his hands and gave soft and sweet kisses. “But you need to play nice. Now turn around and keep your hands on the glass. Do you remember what to call me?”

“Yes Daddy”, Gavin waited to see Allen’s unimpressed smile before turning and placing his hands against the cold window. He could see the reflection of the room on the glass, with both him and the Captain in it. "Are you having a hard time getting it back up so soon? That's why you're linge-!", a slap echoed in the said room and pain spread on Gavin’s right ass cheek, the man holding a shout. It felt worse than usual on the cold skin and with no warm up, making him squirm.

“You want to try that again?”, Allen asked amused.

“No sir.”

“Good, then arch your back”, Gavin did as told and Allen knelt to level his face with the man’s ass. The ass cheeks were spread and a flat tongue traveled from the base of Gavin’s nut sack all the way to the rim, tickling the tender skin between. Tip of the tongue continued tickling the entrance, earning shivers from Gavin and he did his best to stay still, not wanting to accidentally do anything that would make the man stop. When the tongue pushed in, the Detective didn’t only think Yes, but also said it out loud. Allen pushed as deep and stretched as much as he could, not holding back with the saliva, making the hole wet and slick.

Gavin needed to touch himself so bad, but would be slapped again if he did without a permission. “May I touch myself, captain?”, asking that felt stupid.

“No”, fucking asshole… Allen replaced his tongue with a finger and pushed it in and out the hole but it wasn't enough.

“Could you touch me?”, it didn’t hurt to ask.

The Captain got up and settled on Gavin’s side so he still had access to the man’s hole but also to his front. “Since you are asking so nicely”, Allen guided Gavin’s chin to a kiss then lowered his hand to the member. Only a slight touch got it to react, a hold and the simultaneous work done to open up Gavin’s hole was bringing him too close to climax already. He moaned into the Captain’s mouth as a warning and the hold loosened. “What do we say?”

“Thank you sir!”, Gavin didn’t mind playing the man’s games when he got treated this good.

Allen nuzzled behind the Detective’s ear and smelled his hair. “I regret booking the top floor. I would had loved to fuck you against the window and have the passer-by watch. Who knows, maybe your crush would had seen us too”, his voice was like honey. Gavin braced to correct the other but a few stronger jerks on his cock and a bite on his neck interrupted him before he even got a word out. “Unfortunately no-one can see us from here”, Allen backed away and walked to a nightstand. “Stay there”, he commanded when Gavin was making a move to follow him to the bed. The hands stayed on the glass but Gavin stood straight, his back strained from the arching.

Condoms and lube were pulled out of the nightstand and finally Allen removed the rest of his clothing, rolling the rubber over his hard cock. He didn’t look bad himself, not much had changed since they last met. They were the same height, Gavin a bit sturdier and might have gained a few extra pounds in recent years, as where Allen was as fit as ever. Gavin didn’t get to admire him for long, for Allen moved behind Gavin again and guided him to bend, placing three lubricated fingers inside the Detective. The stretch felt amazing and Gavin rocked his hips to get them deeper, verbally informing how good that was. 

“Mmhh~ I can’t hold it any longer”, the fingers were removed and replaced with the head of Allen’s dick, slowly and carefully pushing in.

“Oh now we’re in a hurry when you can't- Ngh!?!”, the pain of Allen’s head suddenly pushing through the sphincter made Gavin’s knees momentarily give out and he collapsed on his forearms against the glass, pressing his forehead to the cold surface. It was burning and the Detective tried to ease the pain by stiffening and relaxing his muscles, warning the Captain not to move.

“Just a reminder of the rules. You really like to run that mouth of yours”, cautiously Allen pushed a little further after given Gavin a moment to adjust. The worst pain had passed and the feeling would only get better with a few calm push and pull. Allen pulled all the way out, applying more lubricate then pushed back all the way in. “Does it feel good?”

“Yeah”, Gavin sighted. The movement stopped so the Detective checked on Allen through the reflection, he was waiting. Gavin groaned: “Yes, sir”, it was a mark for some relentless pounding he had been waiting for the whole day and he didn’t spare with the love noises. Allen’s hands were first on Gavin’s hips, then on the window on both sides of Gavin’s face, then on his shoulders, keeping up the rhythm and force the same the whole time. The Detective rocked his hips accordingly, getting that extra quarter of an inch in.

A hand reached down to Gavin’s once again neglected dick but was brought back up by Allen, who took the Detective’s hands into his own and pressed them against the window. “I didn’t allow you to touch yourself”, his phase slowed down.

“How the fuck do you suppose I’m going to come then?!”, Gavin straightened his position to make it harder for the Captain to stay in him. No way he was letting the other come TWICE before him.

Allen pulled out and shoved Gavin to the bed on his back, way better than against the fucking window, then proceed to fold the Detective’s legs above his upper body. “Hold these”, Allen said and Gavin took a hold on his own thighs to give the man a good access, continuing where he left off. Gavin held his head up to look Allen in the eyes but when the Captain started jerking him off while fucking him the Detective couldn’t help but to press the back of his head to the bed. Allen’s pants, what he could hear through his own moaning, was music to his ears. If the other wasn’t spend up and sweaty after this Gavin would demand a second round.

The thrusts began to slow down and jerking speed up, Allen was close but he still needed to make Gavin come. Gavin claimed his own dick: “Just keep moving like you did before, it felt better when you didn’t concentrate on my junk too”, also Gavin knew way better what felt good to him. The Captain seemed to agree and positioned himself again to get a better angle, ready for the final hammering. With that it didn’t take long for Gavin to reach the climax, warm cum spraying on his abdomen as Allen gave a few more thrusts and came inside the condom.

The post climax high seemed to hit Gavin harder than his bed partner, the other pulling out right away, removing the rubber and heading to the bathroom, while the Detective just laid there with his arms and legs spread out and relaxed. A wet cloth was thrown on him, startling the exhausted man. “Try not to let the cum leak on the sheets, I was planning on sleeping there. You may too, of course”, and with that it was over. There had never been any cuddling or laying side by side after sex, Allen got plenty of that from his wife. They would just do the deed, maybe share a shower and after that sometimes a bed.

Like tonight. But they didn’t fall asleep right away. “How was it?”, Gavin asked as they were laying face to face.

“No complaints, you've never let me down. You?”

“Better than usual”, Gavin didn’t like everything they did together, but in the end Allen would always make sure the Detective got what he wanted, unlike so many other people he has hooked up with.

Allen smiled and they fell silent for a moment. Then he continued: “This might be imposing, but I got really curious about this secret ‘not crush’ of yours.”

“You’re right, it is imposing. Good night”, Gavin turned his back to the other.

“Hey you asked me for a favor and I delivered”, he sure did, the bruises will probably last till the end of the year, “tell me at least something.”

“What got you so curious all of a sudden?”, Allen had never before been interested in Gavin’s relationships. Only if he was in one or not before they did anything together.

“I guess because you’ve never wanted to make someone jealous before. I want to know what’s the deal with you two”, he sounded sincere, no malicious tone in his voice. Gavin pondered should he tell or not, what would it hurt? Maybe he’d get some sympathy from the Captain, something he didn’t get from Tina.

So Gavin turned back to the man and started from beginning. How he was partnered with an android, the most advanced of its kind and perfect in everything it did. How he was sure it would eventually replace him and most likely looked down on him. Its changed attitude towards the Detective: first degrading, then distant as Gavin had demanded and finally co-operative or even friendly for no reason. He left out the caring part, not sure himself if he was just imagining it or was it really there. Finally Gavin told about how the android had reacted when he had straight up asked if Nines liked him and of the holding hands. To which Allen gave Gavin a suggestive look. “For science”, Gavin explained unimpressed.

Allen thought about his answer for a moment. “To be honest, I don’t see why you are so hard on him”, Gavin was going to get the same lecture as he got from Tina and didn’t want to hear it, so he turned away and would had left the bed if Allen hadn't stopped him. “Let me finish. I understand how you feel, I was also afraid when I met the first Connor, I believe he’s now working at the DPD”, what a way to end the night, talk about all the people Gavin hates. “But now I have a RK800 in my own team, Cooper, and I wouldn’t change him for anyone, human or android”, Allen was talking so fondly about that android it brought a single word to Gavin’s mind: traitor. “Your partner might had been an ass towards you in the beginning, but what I know about you I bet you weren’t an angel either. But at least now he’s trying to get along”, Gavin squinted at the man, he hated when people knew him too well and used that knowledge against him.

Nothing was holding Gavin in the bed, Allen had released him when the Detective didn’t pull away anymore. He stayed sitting at the side though, didn’t want to leave but kept himself distant from the Captain’s words.

“From what you told me I can’t tell if the android really has a crush on you or just trying to be friends, he might not know himself either. Most of the androids are like adult sized adolescents, they have all the information in the world but some things you just have to experience to learn, and that takes time”, Allen folded his hands behind his neck. “What does it even matter if he likes you or not? You don't seem interested in him.”

“You’re right about that”, Gavin dove back under a blanket, it was getting fucking cold and he had calmed down enough, “but guess who would be separated if the Captain found out we had an unprofessional work relationship?”

Now he got it. “If you break his heart just to get rid of him and he ends up leaving the force, give him my number. If this RK900 is anything like RK800s then I’d be happy to offer him a place in my team”, like Gavin would ever do that kind of a favor to the tin can.

After another day off Gavin arrived at the precinct like any other work day, his colleagues along other staff taking note he was in a way better mood and noticed the reason for that too. His partner was already at his own desk and when he noticed Gavin approaching the stare held tightly on him.

The Detective didn’t meet the gaze, acting like he hadn’t even noticed it, just casually slumped down in his chair and turned on the terminal. “Anything new?” he still didn’t look at the android, instead checked for new messages or updates, but with peripheral vision saw he was silently being stared at. “Hey asshole, I’m talking to you!”, Gavin snapped when he didn’t get an answer but when he finally gave his partner a good look it seemed like the android wasn’t even on, face expressionless and overall unmoving, like a statue. Nines’ eyes were staring into nothingness. The only sign of life was his yellow blinking LED and it was starting to creep Gavin out. “Hey!! You awake?!” he asked accompanied with a slam of his palm on the desk.

Nines’ eyes focused on the Detective but nothing else changed: “I am. A new witness has come forward regarding Mrs Paredes’ case, we should contact them after the morning briefing”, the android reported as monotonic as ever.

“Good. Let’s do that”, Gavin leaned back in his seat. The android seemed to be fine, maybe he had been receiving something just now and was frozen because of that. He didn’t seem to be bothered about the marks on Gavin’s skin either, definitely noticed them though. Maybe the Detective really had read too much into Nines’ actions before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Summary: Gavin has sex with a guy and tries to get a reaction out of Nines by coming to work with visible hickeys and bruises. I don't know what kind of reaction he was looking for but Nines pretty much just freezes for a moment and then is all normal, so Gavin concludes he has just been over analyzing Nines' actions towards him.


	9. That doesn't happen to men

Everyone says it gets better with time and Nines knows so from experience, but still he wished there was a way to speed up the healing process. He was supposed to already know how it felt like getting your heart broken, having experienced someone using him for their own gain and fooling him into thinking it was love. It happened in his previous life and had a greater impact than what he was dealing with now so it made no sense he was still a wreck after two weeks.

“Drink up, it’s on me”, Connor brought two glasses of thirium drinks equivalent to alcohol for humans and sat down on the opposite side of a table. “Don’t know if it helps but Hank recommended taking you out.”

Nines took the drink with a thanks. They could just interface and run out of things to talk about in less than a minute with their thoughts and emotions transferring to the other instantly. But they had made a deal not to do so unless the topic was time sensitive, because especially for Nines it was important to learn how to communicate with words and expressions better, like humans did. Many have said his demeanors are very mechanical, Nines did show emotion on his face and with his actions but as Connor put it, they often seem rehearsed, non-genuine and sometimes even a little off. It was off-putting to most people, hindering the investigations when witnesses didn’t feel comfortable talking to him.

The last two weeks had been even worse, Nines having trouble showing any emotion whatsoever, afraid that even a hint of sadness would leak and Reed would pick on that. But even when the man wasn't around Nines couldn't ease up, like his feelings were stuck in his throat. “For humans alcohol suppresses inhibitions, I don’t know if this has that kind of effect on androids but at this point I’m willing to try”, Connor raised a toast and Nines responded. The RK800 had been quite worried about him. A few times Nines was afraid his predecessor would confront Detective Reed, judging from a killing stare.

It was unwarranted, the Detective was not to blame for anything. They were nothing to each other and Reed was in no way accountable to Nines. He was allowed to do whatever he wanted with whoever he wanted and it was none of Nines’ business. Besides the android already knew Reed was sexually active, but not taken, Officer Chen providing the latter information. Again there was no logical reason to react this strongly.

Connor did his best to console his brother: Reed is an asshole and it’s best this happened so Nines can get over him, the heartache doesn’t last forever but it’s okay to be sad as long as it does and Connor will be there for him, there’s many more fish in the sea and so on. They downed a few more drinks and Nines did feel himself relaxing and his thoughts and emotions taking new turns.

“What if I just told him the truth of how I feel?”, Nines’ proposition nearly made Connor spit his drink.

Once the liquid was down the RK800 managed to answer with a critical tone: “Why would you do that? It would only have a negative impact on your work relationship and give Reed more ammunition against you. He clearly still holds a grudge, either because of me or generally against androids. Though he has calmed down.”

Nines gave the idea a second thought, he had just blurted it out without analyzing the consequences further, something he didn’t usually do. “I would be partnered with another detective, my feelings would definitely be seen as unprofessional and detrimental. If Detective Reed would take my confession badly I could always move to another precinct or even try another profession, the last I want is hinder his work”, Connor looked sad hearing that. Nines knew the RK800 liked having him around.

Nines offered his hand to tell that no matter what happened he wanted them to stay close, but Connor refused: “I feel like you’re about to share something important. Please use your words, it would be good practice if you’re serious about confessing to Detective Reed”, his tone signaled Connor wasn't too pleased with what Nines was planning but would support him either way.

This is why Nines considered Connor his older brother, the other knew how to guide him in a way that would help him grow and allowed him to make the mistakes that needed to be made to learn. “You will be my brother no matter where I end up from here”, the impact of saying it instead of sharing the feeling was somehow different from before. Was it because of the alcohol? Connor was visibly touched by the words and it made Nines smile. There were only a few people who made Nines react genuinely with his feelings, one being Connor and the more prominent, Gavin Reed. “I would like to keep working with Detective Reed, but I don’t think I can keep going like this much longer.”

It all seemed so clear now, what was he so afraid of earlier?

Nines got a phone call and he looked at Connor confused. “I’m getting a call from Detective Reed”, the man had never called him, wouldn't even have his number if Nines hadn't forced it in his contacts. Connor gave a nod to take the call.

A feminine voice was heard from the other side: “Hi, this is Veronica from the pub Red Clover. The owner of this phone asked me to call you, he isn’t doing too good, I don’t know what got into him… Could you maybe pick him up? I don’t think he- HEY! HEy wait-!”, Veronica’s voice moved away from the phone.

“What’s going on? Are you still there?”, Nines was already looking up the address for the pub, the fastest route there and if there were free taxis nearby. He grabbed Connor’s hand and informed that he needed to go and why, the RK800 of course understood and offered his help which Nines kindly declined. Receiving help was humiliating to the Detective as it is and it was only worse if that help came from an android, let alone two.

Veronica was back on the phone: “Shit, someone led him out and no-one stopped them. I saw them get on a taxi. I don't think they were together at the bar. Should I call the police?” she was worried.

“You already did. Don’t worry, I’ll continue from here. Thank you for calling me and please keep the phone there at the pub, me or the owner will pick it up later. Have a good night”, there had been a taxi standing only a few blocks away from the bar Connor and Nines were sitting at and it arrived shortly after Nines ended the call. He would get in trouble for this but didn't saw any other way than to hack into the taxi network and started going through the cars in the pub's vicinity. There were six vehicles heading away from the pub so he checked the live surveillance footage from inside the taxis and found the target. Detective Reed was barely conscious, leaning on a man whose face Nines wasn’t able to scan because of the angle. Their route seemed to lead to Reed’s apartment so that’s where Nines headed too.

He arrived second and watched the stranger drag Reed from the taxi to the front door and open it with the Detective's keys. Nines stopped them when they were about to enter the building: “Excuse me, is he okay?”, he couldn’t just go assuming the man, now identified as a person with no criminal record, was doing anything but helping Reed get home. They might even know each other. The Detective was unfortunately unresponsive but still somehow on his own feet with the support.

“Mind your own business, droid”, the man replied, his words laced with poison, and entered the building. There was no evidence of the man planning on taking advantage of the Detective’s state in any way but Nines wasn’t going to leave anything at chance, so he stopped the door from closing with a foot and waited for the two to enter an elevator before following. The man wasn’t suspicious but the circumstances were: Reed wasn’t a heavy drinker, information given once again by Chen, so drinking himself in such a state was unlikely, though possible. But what the bartender said made it sound like Reed got like that suddenly and unexpected, indicating he was drugged. And the guy, who according to Veronica hadn't been spending time with Reed that evening, just happened to be there and willing to help him home. The two men might still know each other but Nines wasn’t counting on that.

The building was quiet so it was easy to listen in on what was happening inside the Detective’s apartment. The two had stayed in the living room. Reed was groaning and whining how he felt sick and about to throw up, the other guy soothing and promising he can make the pain go away. At least the Detective was fully conscious now: “I told you already, I’m not interested”, his speech was slurred and there wasn't much fight in the words.

“I helped you all the way here, even paid the taxi and everything. You could at least say thanks”, the man coaxed.

“I owe you nothing, get off…”, there were no sounds of struggle, Reed was probably too weak to push the man away. However his words were clear and that was Nines’ cue.

First he tried to knock, it halted the conversation but there was no movement of anyone coming to open. So he knocked again, more aggressive this time: “Detroit Police, open the door!” Nines could hear silent cursing but still no movement, so finally he broke in with one powerful kick. The stranger was shaken and jumped off the Detective, who was laying on the sofa on his back. His jacket was discarded on the floor, shirt raised up to his armpits and belt unbuckled.

“Wh- You’re the android from downstairs! The fuck’s your problem?!”, the man barked, keeping his distance.

Nines walked in and pulled out his badge, allowing the man to take a good look at it: “If you don’t want any trouble I suggest you leave right now.” The man spat out slurs directed to Nines being both an android and a cop, then reluctantly left the apartment. Once he was out Nines knelt beside the Detective: "Are you alright?"

"You busted my door…", Reed said weakly and looked past Nines at the door.

"I'll call a repair and pay for it. How are you feeling?", the android tried again.

The man let out another pained groan: "Tired. My limbs are numb... I feel like throwing up. Getting a headache too...", the Detective had a hard time focusing his eyes on anything or even keep them open. Nines wanted to take the man to a hospital but Reed refused.

He decided to examine what was used to drug the Detective, needing to know if medical attention was required. "I'm going to check your mouth for traces of any foreign substances. Forgive me", still on his knees, Nines bowed down to Reed's face and tried to pick out any uncommon odors. The Detective didn't reply, probably too out of it to understand what the android meant. He didn't seem to mind the proximity either. Smelling sensors didn't pick up anything so Nines licked the Detective's lips. There was a wince and Reed opened his mouth in surprise, but wasn't turning his head or pushing Nines away. The room was so quiet Nines could hear the man's heart beat like crazy, his own pump working double in circulating the thirium.

Still no traces, Nines was forced to search from inside. The mouth was still hanging open so mindfully Nines slit his tongue between Reed's lips. He will stop the second he detects any resisting, but the man was chillingly tranquil. The tongue traveled inside the Detective's mouth, all Nines' concentration going into analyzing everything he encountered. Until finally he found it: Gamma Hydroxybutyrate, a central nervous system depressant. An illegal substance, commonly used as a rape drug years ago, but shouldn't be lethal. Nines was relieved, the Detective just needed to rest it off. Before he pulled away he noticed a slow movement Reed kept doing with his tongue and lips even when Nines had stopped searching and analyzing. Reed was kissing him.

In shock Nines rose all the way to his feet and looked at the calm man, who in turn hazily looked straight back but like he didn't even recognize the android. Nines' thirium pump was about to jump out of his chest. That hadn't been intentional, just some reaction. Yet, it made Nines see this time he had gone too far, probably wasn't any better than the guy he had kicked out. "I'll take you to bed and then leave", that felt like the best option. He picked Reed up bridal style, letting the man's shirt drape down and cover him properly, and carried him to the bed.

The bed was unmade again and Nines set a blanket so it was easily accessible to the Detective. He could definitely use some water and a painkiller. A weak tug on a sleeve stopped the android's leave. Reed was looking up at him with eyes barely open and brows pinched together: "Don't go…", the words were silent.

The plea shouldn’t make Nines happy, in any other situation yes, but not now. The fact that it did only intensified the guilt already storming inside. “I’ll be right back, just stay here”, Nines held Reed's shoulder while speaking to emphasize his words. Still, the man didn’t seem satisfied when Nines left the room. He found some painkillers and filled a glass with water. Reed was fighting his jeans off when Nines returned and seemed relieved, though disoriented, when he noticed the android. The offerings didn't interest him so Nines left the glass and pill on a nightstand and helped Reed get rid of the jeans by pulling them from the legs. Finally free from the cloth, the Detective curled on his side into a fetal position and held a hand over his mouth, other arm pressing on his stomach.

Who was he kidding, Nines wouldn't be able to leave anywhere as long as his partner was like this. He sat on the bed and rubbed the man's back. Best Nines could do to make himself feel better was to keep lying that this was all for the Detectives benefit, not at all a chance to be close to him like Nines wants.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter of 2020. Thank you for reading so far and see you all next year :)


	10. Confession

Déjà-vu. Gavin was woken up by the sun shining in his eyes but he had no memory of getting in bed. He reached for his phone to see the time but instead found a glass of water, which he almost knocked over, and a painkiller.

A killer hangover hammered his head when he sat up. “Thanks yesterday me”, he said as he took the painkiller and drank down the water. Then he heard a noise, someone talking. In his apartment. Gavin sneaked to his wardrobe where he stored his weapons and ammo in a safe and with a pistol in his hand carefully cracked the bedroom door. Being up only worsened his condition, limbs felt weak and he was about to throw up just from getting out of bed. It didn’t feel like a normal hangover.

With the door open Gavin recognized one of the voices. “The fuck you doing in my home?!”, he dashed to the living room, gun down, and saw Nines leaning on a wall next to the front door, chatting some chick fixing said door. The woman was crouched by the open door but got startled, stood up and backed up into the corridor when she noticed the gun. Nonchalantly Nines reassured the repairer that she didn’t need to be afraid. Gavin reinforced this by putting the gun down on the bar table. “The hell’s going on?” he tried again, with a less threatening tone.

Nines asked the woman to continue her work then approached Gavin, coming way too close so he could keep his voice down, and talked softer than should be possible from him: “How are you feeling?”

“Like shit, but I bet you already know that”, Gavin snapped back, “now tell me why my door is busted and why you’re here so I can finally kick you out.”

“We should wait till she’s done, you probably want to keep this private”, Nines' words didn’t help with the anxiety growing in Gavin. It was scary how he couldn’t remember anything from last night. He did go to a pub but couldn’t remember drinking heavily, only a beer or two. After that pretty much no memories at all, only a distant feeling of discomfort.

While waiting for the repairs to be done Gavin freshened up with a shower and by brushing his teeth. He tried to look for his phone but it was nowhere to be found. When he returned to the living room, fully clothed and fresh, the chick was gone and Nines was making food from who knows what. The cupboards were pretty much empty from ingredients for Gavin seldom made food himself. The plastic really didn’t give a shit that he was in someone else’s apartment, going through someone else’s cupboards and using someone else’s kitchen.

Nines noticed Gavin sit by the bar table, on the other side than Nines by a stove. “Any better?” the way he was so casual about all this started to piss the man off.

“Quit the bullshit and start explaining”, Gavin wasn’t going to fuck around. Nines turned to give the man his full attention, but stayed by the kitchen counter.

“You were drugged”, it was a simple statement and explained a lot if it was true. But it didn’t explain the broken door yet. “I think you realized this yourself and asked the bartender of Red Clover to use your phone to call me. The phone’s still at the pub by the way, thank Veronica for me when you fetch it”, Nines turned back to the food to stir some sauce. There was also spaghetti boiling in a kettle. Gavin was pretty sure he didn’t have any spaghetti in his apartment.

“Why would I ask them to call you of all people?”, it was more a question for himself than to Nines. Gavin dug through his memories and faintly remembered unlocking his phone and giving it to the red headed bartender, then stumbling straight to the bathroom. But he was pretty sure he asked her to call Tina. Then it hit him: Tina is Queen Bee on his phone, and Nines is Tin can. The bartender must had misheard him and picked the closest name. Gavin groaned and rubbed his face and head, getting the android concerned. Nines didn’t say anything but it was obvious from how his attention was completely on Gavin again, brows slightly pressed together and LED blinking yellow. The constant worrying was getting on the man’s nerves. “So you came to pick me up just like that and brought me home?”

“Not quite”, the food needed Nines’ attention so he bustled with it while explaining. “Someone else took you home, I identified them if you wish to confront them. I didn’t like how things were progressing so I followed you into the apartment building and ordered them to leave when it seemed like they… ...” he seemed so hopeless trying to find the right words that Gavin couldn’t help but to finish the sentence for him.

“Tried to rape me?” the android abruptly turned to him like Gavin had just said something appalling. It often slipped the man’s mind that Nines was literally only one year old. Maybe not even that, he could had come to the DPD straight from a factory. He probably knew the statistics of how often shit like this happened to everyone, everywhere and all the time. Not so often men being the victim and especially not the kind of men Gavin is, making all this hard to believe. But Nines wasn’t familiar with the emotional impact. Either way it was starting to make sense why he was trying to be so terribly nice, asking about Gavin's condition, making him food and such.

The android didn’t answer but gave a shy nod, then averted the other’s eyes. Gavin couldn’t deny the information didn’t have an impact on him, shivers running down his spine and phantom hands roaming around his body when he imagined the events of last night. Didn’t help thinking about it too much, besides nothing bad happened thanks to Nines. Though it was getting a bit creepy for Nines always being there when Gavin was in trouble.

“So it was you who broke through the door. How much was the repairs?” Gavin would make Nines pay for it, he never asked the android to play a hero.

“Don’t worry about it, I already paid”, a plate of spaghetti with sauce on top was set in front of Gavin, followed with a fork and a knife. “Be careful, it’s still hot”, Nines warned and leaned on the kitchen counter instead of sitting by the table with the man. Usually the plastic attempted to stand or sit uncomfortably close to his partner so this position made Gavin suspicious. There was a feeling that Nines hadn't told everything. He should also check the facts from the bartender and the guy who brought him home, even though he might be unwilling to talk if things went down as Nines told them.

Gavin didn’t touch the food. This was a lot to take in and, along with the still storming nausea, drove away his appetite. How did Gavin know Nines wasn’t the one to drug him and he just made up the other guy? Though the android wasn’t there when he started to feel sick, that much the Detective could remember. Either way, doing this much for a colleague felt off. “So, what’s in this for you? You expecting me to pay you back somehow?”

“You don't owe me anything, I'm doing this because I want to”, Nines sounded honest but Gavin still had his doubts.

“Am I supposed to believe that you dropped whatever you were doing after getting the call, followed me home, kicked down my door to _save_ me, apparently did some grocery shopping since you can’t find this shit from my kitchen, called for a door repair and stayed to make me lunch? All this just because you wanted to? With no strings attached?”, Gavin monitored Nines’ body language, facial expression, eye movement, LED and everything very closely. The guy can be a statue when he wants to, but there’s always something that reveals the truth.

“You can believe what you want but that’s the truth”, Nines was staring back, eyes didn’t dart in any direction, his face was neutral, posture open with hands leaning on the counter behind him, LED blinking blue, like Gavin was supposed to know what that meant. Nothing indicated he was lying. Yet Gavin still didn’t believe him. Nines probably watched him sleep the whole night, getting some weird satisfaction from that.

“You don’t think it’s weird? You doing all this just because and getting nothing in return? Staying here the whole night, even after you kicked the guy out and I was safe and sound?” Gavin kept pushing and did get a reaction from his partner. The android’s LED blinked yellow a few times and he looked down. Just a little push and he would crack.

Nines looked back up and his gaze was softer than it had been just now, pleased even: “You asked me to stay.”

It took a second for Gavin to internalize what had been said then burst into a full out laughter. He tried to form words multiple times but another spurt of laughter always interrupted him. Nines must had been more fucked up than Gavin last night to imagine something like that. Finally he managed to control himself enough to speak: “I don’t care how high I was, that would never happen. Not even in my nightmares.”

A hologram picture formed on Nines’ palm and he extended it closer to the man. It was a video and the audio was playing from Nines’ mouth. It was... creepy. The video was from Nines’ perspective and in it Gavin was in his bed, drugged up to the eyeballs. It was sickening seeing himself like that. Nines in the video turned to leave but halted for some reason and looked back to the bed. The words Gavin didn’t believe were true came out and he could swear his blood stopped flowing for a second.

That wasn’t him.

“Detective?” Nines closed the video and cautiously sat down opposite to the man.

“That wasn’t me”, Gavin said absently and couldn't make himself to meet Nines' eyes. Still, that’s what Nines had seen last night and the man wasn’t okay with that. “Leave, now.”

“I didn’t mean to upset you, I just wanted to explain why-”

“I said LEAVE!”, this was getting way too much to take in. No-one had ever seen him so weak and disgusting, fucking begging for an android not to leave him. And here the same android was rubbing it in his face. Gavin could feel his pulse rising and breathing become tense, if the robot doesn’t leave soon he will probably rip its head off.

The tin can tried to salvage the situation: “I shouldn’t have shown you that, it was extremely stupid of me”, his apologies didn’t reach Gavin at this point. Nines didn’t show any signs of leaving so Gavin picked up the gun he had left on the end of the bar table and placed the barrel under Nines’ chin, pointing it up to his brain. His LED blinked panic red but face stayed neutral, god Gavin hated that.

“Now listen closely, plastic. The moment you open your mouth I’m going to pull the trigger. What you do instead is get up, walk out of my fucking apartment, delete EVERYTHING you have on me from the last 24 hours and never talk about it with anyone, including me. I’m not going to repeat myself so I hope you know what to do”, Gavin wasn’t going to commit a murder, but hopefully he was convincing enough to make the machine leave. The asshole opened his mouth, Gavin pressed the barrel even harder on his chin to close it. “Don’t. Fucking. Test me”, he growled.

How many times have they done this, stared each other down, waited for the other to yield. Only this time there was nothing or no-one to interfere, they could go on forever. It was unfair the plastic didn’t even need to blink. If only Gavin could make even a warning shot, but the neighbors would definitely call 911, like they should, and it would only get Gavin in trouble. He was also weaker, especially in this state, so he couldn’t just wrestle the tin can out.

Nines didn’t budge. “Do you want to get shot?! Why are you doing this to me?! You wanna stay and mock me for how stupid and pathetic I am for needing a fucking machine’s help?! Then go ahead, let it all out, then get out of my sight!” Gavin leaned towards Nines as close as he got with the table between them and shouted in the android’s face, the machine staying still. “But newsflash, I’ve never wanted or needed your help! Would had been fine even if you hadn’t shown up! My whole life would be much better without you in it!” was it a bit much? For sure, but right now Gavin just needed to get the android out.

Something touched Gavin's hand that was holding the gun, making his trigger finger twitch. Nines placed his uncovered hand over the man’s, just enough to touch, and stared at the connection. He wouldn't get the gun off his face that easily. “If only I could show you how I feel the way I would to an android. I wonder if it would make a difference”, Nines said softly with his LED blinking blue. So that’s what he was trying to do. Gavin didn’t care and informed so. “I know you don’t need me and I am nothing to you, but for some reason that only makes me desire your company even more”, the mood of the conversation suddenly shifted to very eerie and the idea of Nines staring Gavin while he slept didn't feel too far fetched anymore.

How was Gavin supposed to answer to that. The android was making this super awkward. “You into getting treated like trash? That’s rich given your kind has been given human rights like a year ago. You'd had loved it before that”, the android’s hand still touching Gavin's was getting uncomfortable and since the gun didn’t do much the man decided to take distance, leaving the table all-together and facing the living room window. He wasn’t one to kink shame but wasn’t okay with someone using him to get their kicks without his consent either. Gavin had gotten his share of unwanted attention but somehow this got under his skin worse than before, maybe because it came from an android.

“It’s not that”, Nines paused to think how he could explain himself. “You’re the first person who has seen me as something more than a RK android”, the hell was this plastic talking about? He WAS nothing but a fucking android just like the rest of them. “To everyone else I’ve been like a… A super android, being the last RK model made by CyberLife, following Markus and Connor. They are seen as almost godly beings by other androids for what they did for all of us. And even when I didn’t have any part in the revolution I am being lifted among them undeserved. Only because I am the latest RK android”, Nines got off his seat.

“Don’t come any closer”, Gavin warned him when he approached. Nines halted.

“I must say you were a shock to me at first, I was used to people forcing their way to meet me. Boosting their own status and ego by being around me. Everyone thinking I could do anything and work miracles like Markus and Connor. And because of that I have been given everything I’ve wanted without any effort. I joined the DPD to challenge myself, to do something I wasn’t built for and maybe even to compare myself to Connor. To bring my feet back to the ground. And the job has given me exactly what I wanted. But I didn’t expect a human to be an even greater challenge”, it was slow, but Nines’ voice kept coming closer as he spoke.

Gavin didn’t answer. He didn’t care, only hoped the android would leave after he’s done talking. Nines' life story was a prime example of the unfairness of life and it was only making Gavin hate his partner even more. Where he has been forced to fight for what he wanted, no-one believing in him or giving a hand, everything’s just been handed to the plastic without him having to work for it.

“First I just wanted to prove myself to you. But I’m afraid I’ve gotten addicted”, the plastic was right behind him, presence pressing. Gavin had his arms crossed, gun tapping on his bicep nervously. If the machine touches him he will put a bullet between its eyes, no matter the consequences. “You are an extraordinary person and it’s been a privilege to work with you”, Nines lingered for a moment, then walked away and out of the door.

Gavin didn't dare to look back. What the hell kind of confession was that? What does he mean addicted? Besides, that stupid tin can had it all wrong. He’s the amazing super computer and based on what Gavin has seen him do probably deserves all the adoration and fame. Gavin’s just a simple human doing his best to get by, stepping on everyone else to get to the top and making their lives miserable along the way. It's unfair but that's life for you.


	11. Do I Wanna Know?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was in between of should I post this chapter or summarize the main points of it in some other chapter because I felt like it doesn't have enough content by itself. But I haven't updated in a while, this was already written, and boring content is better than no content at all so take it.
> 
> The fic is getting so long I need to read it from the beginning to the end to remember what I've written and what I've decided to leave out ^^'

This time Nines had gone too far, he was sure of it. Detective Reed will definitely walk straight to Fowler’s office, if he hasn’t called the Captain already, and demands Nines to be assigned to someone else.

The android had taken his stand with Reed and was ready to face the consequences. The circumstances could had been better, yet he regretted nothing. Nines only hoped his words reached the Detective the way he had intended, communicating with a human is so complicated.

It was crazy how Nines could recognize Detective Reed before seeing him from the rhythm of his footsteps. The man stopped for a second before continuing towards their desks. “Good morning Detective”, Nines greeted and was surprised the man slouched down to his chair instead of marching past. Reed mumbled back something inaudible and turned on his desktop.

Why wasn’t anything happening? Reed was a bit more evasive than normally but otherwise he got straight to work as always. Things were not happening the way Nines anticipated. The silence was broken: “I fetched my phone and got curious, how did you know I was heading home from the bar? I assumed you saw me leave and followed but the bartender told me that’s not the case”, he spoke silently so the people around them wouldn’t listen in. “You tracking me?” the tone was accusing.

Nines hesitated before determining Reed deserved nothing but the truth, especially if the alternative was accusing Nines of stalking him. So the android explained how he had used the taxi security camera system to find the Detective.

As Reed listened his eyes widened and eyebrows shot up and he rolled closer to the desk. “Since when have you been able to do that and why wasn’t I informed? Did you leave traces?”, he wasn’t angry like he was supposed to be. He was excited. The Detective quickly glanced at Connor and whispered: “Can Connor do that?”

The impressed reaction got Nines off guard so it took him a moment to get a word out of his mouth. “This was the first time I tried anything like that. I shouldn’t had done it and won’t do it again because it’s illegal”, it was a shame to rain on the Detective’s parade but Nines wasn’t going to misuse his skills again. 

“Don’t be a wuzz, think about the possibilities”, Reed emphasized the last part with his hands. “If you can pull that off without leaving a trace think of the ways we could use it”, his eyes were literally gleaming.

It wasn’t admirable that Reed didn’t mind misusing power to close his cases but right now the only thing Nines was hearing was: “Does this mean you want to keep working with me?”

Reed’s face went sour. “Want? Pfft.. I’ve been forced to work with you for the last five months”, now he sounded more like himself. “But the more useful you make yourself the more tolerable it gets”, the sourness changed into a slight smile.

It didn’t matter how Reed tried to circle around it, he wanted to keep working with Nines. If not he could easily get rid of the android now that he knew Nines had hacked the security system of a private organisation. No-one might notice if they didn’t know to look into it, but Nines had definitely left some traces. Reed could easily use it against Nines but it didn’t seem like he was about to.

Detective Reed wanted to keep working with him. The fact evoked feelings that were too much to keep in. “I’ll be right back”, Reed was left confused when Nines quickly excused himself and headed for the men’s bathroom. He leaned on a counter and stared at himself through the mirror. There were tears forming in his eyes he couldn’t control.

The bathroom door opened and closed but Nines didn’t break the gaze from his own eyes. “What happened? Are you alright?”, it was Connor. Nines straightened himself and turned to his brother. The RK800 saw the tears that had now fallen from his eyes and was ready to kick a certain detective’s ass but Nines stopped him and opened a connection. He wouldn’t be able to explain this feeling with words.

Connor accepted and was as confused as Nines of the turn of events. Still, he joined the younger android’s joy. Nines learned that before following him to the bathroom Connor had passed the Detective and accusingly inquired what he had said to the RK900, Reed disregarding the android with a middle finger. Connor felt the need to apologise but it was better if they didn’t make a bigger number of this than they already had.

They returned to their desks, Connor exchanging glares with Detective Reed. “Are you girls done with your bathroom gossip? Remembered to fix your hair and take a selfie?” Reed mocked Nines when he was done with the other android.

“Yes, do you want to see it? I think it turned out pretty good”, Nines carried on with the joking.

“Let’s just get to work”, Nines couldn’t agree more.


	12. Play date

The new skills of Gavin’s android partner really came handy in the Blue Crystal case. Technically the skills weren’t new, Nines just hadn’t bothered to find out that he could hack. From what Gavin understood, Nines possibly has even more functions the android isn’t aware of. He was woken as a deviant, before that CyberLife had installed only the most necessary info on the functions of his body. Rest was left for him to discover and learn.

Turned out Nines really was a wuzz what came to using those skills. It took days of convincing before he agreed to hack into private security systems so they could go through the last moments of the victims of Blue Crystal. What they were doing and more importantly who they were with. The police had access to all of the security footage in the streets and any public areas, but what came to private owned properties it was up to the owner if they wanted to hand over the data. Most of the property owners didn’t want their nightclubs, bars or pubs to be connected with a new killer drug and since the bodies weren’t found in the said places the owners were not obligated to cooperate.

The convincing would had taken even longer if the android wasn’t so keen on pleasing Gavin. The attention was pressing, but now that the man knew what was going through Nines’ mind he could exploit it. It was like having a golden retriever as a partner, something he should never say out loud if he wanted to keep his job.

Their new findings led them here: an overnight stakeout. They had a few persons of interest and a location connected to either suppliers or even the source and now they needed to wait and see if they unveiled anything. The drug had claimed more victims and the longer it took them to track down the source the harder it will be to prevent it from spreading. There were also androids who had been given or used the drug voluntarily and had survived with only minor damage, meaning the formula was getting closer to being complete and be sold around more widely. And androids actually wanting to buy it. There was a heat put on Gavin and Nines to get results, the Captain even threatening to put Connor on the case with them.

The first few hours in a police owned civil car - not too new but not too old either to raise suspicion parked on the side of the road - went smoothly. Unfortunately there hadn't been traffic in or out the rundown motel they were keeping an eye on. But it wasn’t too bad sitting with Nines in the car, listening to music, drinking coffee and eating snacks.

They even talked a bit, thankfully nothing too deep this time. Gavin was hesitant at first, for somehow their conversations always took a wrong turn and now would be the worst time for that to happen. But Nines was keeping the chat lighthearted, so the man allowed himself to lower his guard. Nines asked about the music Gavin had picked, about his snacks and eating habits in general. Guess it was interesting for someone who didn’t need to eat. It felt either like a first date, getting to know each other without asking anything too personal yet, or like talking to a noisy kid who’s too interested in everything. Gavin couldn’t decide was it annoying or endearing.

When Nines went silent, having asked all he wanted to know, Gavin thought of asking something about the android. He had to remind himself that he didn’t have any interest in the android's business and had no obligation of keeping the conversation running. But the questions were already forming in his mind: Did Nines listen to music, watch shows or movies, play video games or something else in his free time? Did he hang out with Connor or did he have other friends? Heck, he might even spend time with Tina and Gavin had no clue since the man had told her to keep the plastic out of their convos.

“Wanna pick the next song?” Gavin asked nonchalantly, knowing full well he was just dodging directly asking about Nines’ taste in music. His own playlists were getting old anyway.

Nines looked at the man surprised, or as surprised as that stone face can manage. Like he hadn’t been expecting Gavin to speak for the rest of the night. The man immediately regretted asking, but then Nines smiled: “Sure, I got a few.”

The songs would have to wait, Gavin noticed movement by the motel. A person who seemed to be human, according to their body shape, entered the property by foot. The police car windows were darkened so the person who arrived shouldn’t be able to notice the detectives sitting there. Unfortunately the comer wasn’t any of their targets but Gavin took a picture and Nines identified her just in case. They looked her up from the police database and she had a criminal record from dealing drugs, so possibly involved with the Blue Crystal too. A while later an android arrived with a car. This one they had been able to loosely connect to many of the victims but the android didn’t have a criminal record and the detectives didn’t have anything incriminating against them. Yet. But Gavin and Nines were definitely onto something here.

The two targets stayed at the motel for less than a half an hour, then the android left. The detectives had a theory that this android was the one handing the substance to final users. Androids wouldn’t take it from a human. The human departed to the direction she came from shortly after, but for some reason took interest in the car Gavin and Nines were in. “Shit”, Gavin cursed when she turned to approach them. If she came close enough the darkened windows wouldn’t be any use. The LED in Nines’ face could be seen even further.

“Should we confront her?”, Nines asked, readying his pistol.

“No, she can’t know we’re on to them”, they needed to get closer to the source before making arrests. They needed more information and an arrest would only make the people who pull all the strings go underground. Gavin didn't know if the target was planning on stealing the car or what, but finding two guys just sitting there with snacks and all would be pretty suspicious. He squeezed through between the front seats to get to the back, making the whole car shake. It didn’t matter, he had a plan to make her lose interest in them and the shaking made it more authentic. Hurriedly he laid on the backseat on his back and ordered Nines: “Lay on top of me.”

The plastic was staring at him, completely dump struct: “What?”

“Get a fucking move on!”, Gavin pulled the android to the backseat, rocking the car even more. Nines was like a giraffe in a box with his long limbs but made his way on top of the man. “Act like we’re making out”, Gavin made sure their guns were not seen if the suspect tried to see inside, then held Nines' face. His partner was frozen in place, a deer in a headlight. The suspect reached the car, definitely seeing through the darkened windows that the front seats were empty. Time to start the act and looks like Gavin had to do it alone.

He pulled Nines’ face towards his own and pressed their lips together in an open mouthed kiss. With his hand covering Nines' face and the android covering Gavin the target shouldn’t be able to see their faces even if she saw something through the windows. On top of that the man moaned passionately and squirmed under his partner, the android finally picking up the name of the game and moved along, although stiffly. He even slit a hand under Gavin’s shirt but the touch was careful, like the slightest pressure would shatter the man. There was no response to Gavin's kissing though.

NO-ONE wanted to walk into two guys getting it on so this would definitely get the suspect off their back. Carefully Gavin peaked past Nines to where he had seen the woman next to the car, she was no longer there. “I think she’s gone”, Gavin whispered and pushed Nines a bit to get room to sit up, checking the surroundings while Nines did the same. The target was walking away from the car in a hurry. “Heh, I think we spooked her”, Gavin said with a grin and faced Nines right in front of him.

It was dark, the streetlights giving only a bit of light through the darkened windows but Gavin could swear Nines’ cheeks had a blue hue. Overall his face was a sight to behold: his mouth a stern thin line and brows knit together in confusion. The LED blinked yellow like Gavin had given him lifelong trauma.

What had he been thinking. “Guess I spooked you too”, he tried jokingly, but the android didn’t react. Gavin swallowed. He never apologized to anyone and this would not be an exception. Besides, the idea was bad but it worked and they got off the hook so what was there to apologize. “Don’t think too much into it, that was just something to get her off our back and it did”, Gavin was already defending himself.

Nines leaned forward, bringing their lips closer but Gavin dodged by sliding down to his back since he was already leaning on the door. “Just a diversion?” Nines asked, the tone bland and face having reverted back to a neutral expression. LED disco was still going though. Gavin confirmed. “I see”, tin can got out of the car and walked to the passenger side, sitting in his seat. He was upset. For what, Gavin wasn’t sure. For being used as a diversion in such a manner or of the fact that’s all it was?

The nature of Nines’ _obsession_ was unclear to Gavin, or he was denying the truth. Was it just admiration or also physical interest? Till now tin can hadn’t made any clear advances. For androids casual touching was just a form of communicating so Gavin didn’t count those, but just now the man was pretty sure Nines was trying to kiss him. He did what any mature adult would do and decided to forget it ever happened and never discuss it with Nines. What he didn't know about wouldn't hurt him. Gavin returned to the driver's seat and needed to come up with something to lighten up the mood. "So... How about those songs?"


End file.
